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GIGAL SER 


THE PERSON 
AND MISSION OF THE || 
HOLY SPIRIT 


' BY 


GEORGE SOLTAU 


PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL OF THE Biste || 


(INCORPORATED) 


1720 Arch Street Philadelphia, Pa, | 


Ce ey Sol 
and See 7 ee 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER PAGE 
By iaey TT wo-Poip) Girt OF (Gop evi cs 5 
IJ. THe RELATIONSHIP OF THE Hoty SPIRIT TO : 

THe IOORD JESUS i ac ea at ehe i shane ae 21 
iit to Becer AND BEARY WITNESS 04) Uae 2 32 
Py LO'USRAL AND TO) PILE ooo DG ele 4I 
NURSE ECINOU NUTINI SSN ee Galas Aincaye' 8a) Ural mbanaremunE 48 
Ve DE Stony ANOINTING OI sn euye aa bccn 56 

Vite CRE ENDUEMENT OF) POWER IA Wena ays 63 

Ey CE PAP TISM (IN) (DHE) OPIRUE IG oie Was vavelsle 73 
Pe ECELVING (EH EW OPIRIT sag sss (aaleetelihnicn cies 84 
Mop SINS AGAINST THE |ELOLY SPIRIT OL. o4/0 ocak 94 

XI. Some RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE 


XIII. 


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WALKING IN THE SPIRIT—PRAYING IN THE 
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THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


CHAPTER I 
THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


N recent years there has been an increasing in- 

terest in all books and addresses purporting to 

deal with the Person and Work of the Holy 

Spirit. Wherever believing and humble hearts 
have set themselves to learn and receive from Him, they 
have been abundantly blessed. Power for service and for 
suffering has been given; courage to bear witness for Christ 
has been suddenly and blessedly manifested; transfigured 
characters have illustrated and proved the truths attested, 
and God has been glorified. The object of the following 
pages is not primarily experimental, but rather expository, 
in order that the experimental may grow out of, and depend 
upon, the exposition of Scripture. 

God has bestowed two gifts. He has given His Son to- 
the world, and His Spirit to the Church. Each has had a 
mission in the world, and both are essential unto eternal 
life. In many minds confusion has arisen from lack of clear 
perception of the distinctive features of the two wondrous 
missions. 


THE GIFT AND MISSION OF THE SON 
John iii. 16: “God so loved the world that He gave His 
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should 
not perish, but have everlasting life.” Isa.ix.6: “Unto us 
a child is born; unto us a son is given.” The main purpose 
of this first gift was two-fold :— 


—I— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


I. To Reveal the Father 


(a) John xiv. 9: “He that hath seen Me hath seen the 
Father.” Matt. xi. 27: “Neither knoweth any man the 
Father save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will 
reveal Him.” There is no real foundation in Scripture for 
the popular teaching of the Universal Fatherhood of God. 
The statement “We are the offspring of God” (Acts xvii. 
29), was made to enlighten the heathen as to the origin of 
the human race, God being the Creator, not heathen gods; 
it was not made as a Christian doctrine defining a relation- 
ship which can only be the result of the new birth. It was 
the mission of the Son of God to reveal the Father to the 
disciples who were believers in Him as the Son of God. 

Admission into the family of God is only by the New 
Birth—being born again not of corruptible seed but of in- 
corruptible, by the Word of God that liveth and abideth 
forever.” I Pet. i. 23. The parable of the Prodigal Son 
does not teach the Fatherhood of God, but does illustrate 
Ps. cili. 15. “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the 
Lord pitieth them that fear him.” It has been well said that 
Luke xv. does not contain the whole Gospel, but that the 
whole Gospel would not be complete without Luke xv. 
The Lord’s purpose was revealing the existence of a rela- 
tionship between God and believers in Him that was not 
known to exist, namely, that of Father and Children. 


II. To make Atonement for, and put away, Sin 


(6) John i. 29: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh 
away the sin of the world.” 1 John iii. 5: “He was mani- 
fested to take away our sin.” 1 Peter ii. 24: “Who His 
own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree.” At 
the close of His ministry He said, “I have manifested Thy 


iY ee 


THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


name unto the men which Thou gavest Me” (John xvii. 6). 
“I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do” 
(John xvii. 4). “It is finished” (John xix. 30). The two- 
fold purpose of making atonement for sin and manifesting | 
the Name of the Father having been accomplished, He | 
passed on, ascending to the right hand of God, and prayed 
for the gift of God to be bestowed ; namely, the Holy Spirit. 


THE GIFT AND MISSION OF THE SPIRIT 


The description of the twofold gift may be found in John | 
x. 10: (a) “I am come that they might have life;” (0) | 
“And that they might have it more abundantly.” The gift 
of Christ is for Life. “He that hath the Son of God hath 
life.” The gift of the Holy Spirit is for the abundant life— 
the manifestation, development, education, growth of the 
life. 

What is the past history of the Holy Spirit as revealed 
in Scripture? Gen. i. 2: “The Spirit of God brooded over 
the face of the waters.” When the beautiful earth as 
originally made and inhabited (see Isa. xlv. 18, R. V.) had 
become shapeless and empty, buried in the double envelope 
of water and darkness, the patient, loving, grieved Spirit 
of God is represented as hovering over all, like a mother 
bird over her robbed and despoiled nest. How intense the 
love, how pathetic the interest, how representative of Him 
throughout all human history, mourning over all that is 
out of harmony with the government of God; waiting to 
restore, refill, bless, and occupy a lost world—symbol of a 
lost soul—a lost world recovered by the fiat of God, but a 
lost soul only recoverable by the sacrifice of the Son of God. 
Not only does the Spirit mourn over and watch, He also 
creates (Job xxvi. 13). By His Spirit the heavens are gar- 
nished. He reveals light and life. 


Ba FR a TE SNA SRR SRE AS DS OAS EN NEE TIS AON ESSA MF OS Te EM AON A EG PS RE ET 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


There is a symbol of this past and future work of the 
Spirit given in the story of Noah’s dove, when, the earth 
submerged under water, the dove was sent out, and brood- 
ing over the face of the waters, finding no resting place, 
returned to Noah; then sent out a second time, returned 
with an olive twig, showing she had found a place on which 
to alight, but not a place where she could abide permanently; 
thirdly, was sent out again, and returned no more, for she 
had found an abiding place. The Spirit of God found no 
resting-place in that early period of judgment (Gen. i. 2). 
All down the Millenniums from Adam to Christ, He came 
on this one and that one, but found no abiding place until 
Jesus of Nazareth came, the holy Son of God; and then, 
says John the Baptist, “I saw the Spirit descending from 
heaven like a dove, and it abode upon Him” (John i. 32). 
_ A dove is the only bird that does not possess a gall-bladder 
_ —fitting emblem, therefore, of the Spirit, to rest on Him in 
whom was no guile or sin. 

Between Ascension day and Pentecost was a short inter- 
val, and on that day the Spirit descended again, and abode 
on, and in, the hundred and twenty redeemed ones in Jeru- 
salem, taking possession of them, to guide, fill and energize 
with Divine power. 

Consider next the phases of the work of the Spirit in 
Old Testament times. No less than eighty-five allusions will 
be found to the Spirit in twenty-two books of the Old Tes- 
tament, distributed as follows: 

The Pentateuch will have fourteen allusions. The Histor- 
ical books will have twenty-five allusions. The Poetical 
books, nine allusions, and the Prophetical books will have 
thirty-seven allusions. 

Different expressions are used to define the arrival and 


LORE SEH ES SS TT OLE ESET ATTN SBE PILE IER SIRT TES SETAE LE LETT AT EPI ETSI OS TELS LT TET LEASE TELS AIEEE 
at as 


aR 
THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 
_—<—————eeeeeeee 
operations of the Spirit, which have their corresponding 
uses in the New Testament. They are eight in number and 
may be studied as follows: 5) Ott netimaad, ‘Webaxch 


1. Breathing on, Breath. Ezekiel xxxvii. 9, 14, Isaiah xi. 
7 and John xx. 22. 3 

2. Rushing. Ezekiel iii, 12 and Acts it. 2. 

3. Came upon. Judges iii. 10, xiv. 19, and Acts x. 44. 

4. Resting on. Numbers xi. 25 and John 1. 33. 

s. Filling. Exodus xxxi. 3 and Acts il. 4. 

6. Poured out. Isaiah xliv. 3, Joel ii. 28 and Acts it. 33. 

7. Clothed. 1 Chronicles xii. 18 and Luke xxiv. 49 (en- 
mantled). 

8. Clothed himself with, Judges vi. 34, 2 Chronicles xxiv. 
20 and John xiv. 17. 


The purposes of His coming were then temporary, as 
compared with the purposes of permanent occupation of the 
hearts of believers after the Atonement, and the receiving 
of the Saviour into the glory. 

Qn Bezaleel He came as the Spirit of wisdom for work, 
enabling Him to copy the patterns of the Tabernacle given 
by God to Moses. Exodus xxxi. 3. 

On the seventy elders of Israel, He came as the Spirit of 
Prophecy, that they might preach the truth in the camp of 
Israel, and strengthen the hands of Moses. Numbers xt, 25. 

On Joshua, Othniel, Gideon, Samson, He came to qualify _ 
for Leadership, that they might obtain victory over Israel’s 
foes, and give deliverance. Numbers xxvii. 18; Judges iit. 
103 Vi. 34; Xili. 25; xiv. 6, 19. 

On David He came for inspiring Praise and the writing 
of the Psalms. 2 Samuel xxiii. 1, 2. ; 
ence 


‘ rome Queso 


Se SS eS ee te eet erences 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
SN Se aaanannenn ene Tema ENE nee ESE NN 

On Zechariah, the prophet, for witness-bearing for God 
in a time of national defection. 2 Chronicles xxiv. 20. 
Similarly He came upon Ezekiel, when in charge of the cap- 
tives by the river Chebar. 


The contrast between this period of His working and 


that of the New Testament is that He filled no administra- 
tive position in the affairs of the people of God. Neither is 
there any mention made of Sanctification being His great 
work through His indwelling. 

Another remarkable phase of His work in these times 
was the way in which He came upon evil men in order to 
use them temporarily as His mouthpieces, to convey the 
message of God. Balaam is the first of such cases, who 
was compelled to bless Isrel when he came to curse. In 
three passages this is stated, Numbers xxii. 38, xxiii. 16, 
and xxiv. 2. 

Upon Saul, the son of Kish, He also came, and upon a 
company of men with him, so that the proverb was started 
in Israel, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 1 Samuel 
MLO 7 cts.'O5 KIX 20,124, 

The corresponding character to these in the New Testa- 
ment is Judas, who stands out in awful prominence as one 
of the twelve apostles, who was as successful and able, by 
the power given him of the Lord, to cast out unclean spirits, 
to heal the sick and to raise the dead, as were any of the 
others. Yet all the time his heart was that of a traitor ; 
and he ended his life in shame and irretrievable ruin. Both 
Balaam and Judas were mastered by covetousness: they 
loved the wages of iniquity, and their hearts were not held 
by the truth they knew and were able to teach. Mere 
knowledge of the truth is not always power to live it out; 
it must enter the realm of the heart and will, or the life will 
be eternally lost. 


en 


THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


The Holy Spirit a Person 


The Holy Spirit is a person, not an influence emanating 
from God. This is shewn by the following group of texts. » 
He speaks, Acts i. 16: “The Scripture should be fulfilled 
which the Holy Spirit spake before by the mouth of David.” 
He works miracles, Acts ii. 4: “They began to speak with 
other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Acts viii. 
39: “The Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip.” He 
sets ministers over the church of God, Acts xx. 28: “Take 
heed to all the flock in which the Holy Ghost hath made 
you bishops.” He commands and forbids, Acts xi. 12: “The 
Spirit bade me go with them.” Acts xiii. 2: “The Holy 
Ghost said, Separate Me Barnabas and Saul.” Acts xvi. 6: 
“Having been forbidden of the Holy Ghost to speak the 
word in Asia ;” ver. 7, “The Spirit of Jesus suffered them 
not.” He bears witness, Rom. viii. 16: “The Spirit Him- 
self beareth witness with our spirit.” He prays, Rom. viii. 
26: “The Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us.” He 
can be grieved, Eph. iv. 30: “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of 
promise.” He can be blasphemed, Mark iii. 29: He can be 
resisted, Acts vil. 51: “Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost.” 
Such language as the foregoing would be meaningless unless 
applied to a Person. 


The statements as to the gift. He was promised. Many / 


promises are found in the Old Testament of the coming of 
the Spirit. It was the great hope for the world-wide bless- 
ing, and was to follow the fulfillment of the promise of the 
Messiah to make atonement for sin. In this way Joel’s 
prophecy (ii. 28) may be taken with Luke xxiv. 49, “I send 
the promise of the Father ;” and with Acts 1. 4-8, He charged 
them to wait for the promise of the Father. Faith was to 
wait for the fulfillment of the promise, knowing who had 


—ll— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


hold of the other end of the promise. The Spirit was 
prayed for by the Lord, John xiv. 16: “I will pray the 
Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, even the 
Spirit of truth.” In Acts ii. 33, the Lord is spoken of by 
Peter as “having received the promise of the Father,” and 
therefore pouring forth the Spirit. 

Too little attention may have been paid to this side of the 
matter; namely, our possession of the Spirit, the result of 
the Lord’s enquiry of the Father. The word “pray,” used 
in the following passages by the Lord of Himself as ad- 
dressing the Father, does not signify ask for, or petition 
for, but make enquiry concerning. John xiv. 16. “I will 
pray the Father and He shall give you another Comforter.” 
xvi. 26. “I say not unto you that I will pray the Father 
for you,” xvii:'9. “I. pray’ for, them... T-pray not for the 
world.” v.15. “I pray not that Thou shouldest take them 
from the world.” It is a word only used of one speaking to 
an equal, not of a suppliant. Then there is our side of 
prayer, Luke xi. 13: “If ye being evil know how to give 
good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your 
heavenly Father give the Spirit to them that ask Him.” 
Here the word will be asking as a suppliant. The attitude 
of prayer was that of the disciples during the ten days 
between the Ascension and the day of Pentecost. In their 
case it could not have been otherwise. But not so now. 
There need be no such interval between believing on the 
Lord for Life, and receiving the Holy Spirit. The emphatic 
word now is receive rather than ask. 

For He has been given, John iii. 34: “He giveth not the 
Spirit by measure.” Acts viii. 20: “Thou hast thought to 
obtain the gift of God with money.” Acts x. 45: “On the 
Gentiles was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.” If 


a RS AA BEES ABE TIS SANT ESET DEE IE SEADOO EMIT IE EE EEE DEEDES TEDL DEE, 
a 


ae 

THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 
——————— EEE 
given, then to be definitely accepted, welcomed, trusted, and 
evermore yielded to. 

The manner of the gift. Several phrases are used to | 
define how God has bestowed the Spirit. Acts ii. 17: “I 
will pour out of My Spirit.’ The idea is of a stream ‘ 
poured out from above, and flowing in refreshing and life- 
giving power. | 

This expression corresponds with that of Isaiah xliv. 3: 
“I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon 
the dry ground. I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed and 
my blessing upon thy offspring.” 

Acts x. 44: “The Holy Ghost fell on them that heard”—= 


not noisily, or as a torrent, but gently, silently, as the dew, _ 


alighting and producing instantaneous results of blessing. 

Acts ii. 4: “They were all filled with the Holy Ghost ;” 
here is the idea of a vessel filled from a stream or fountain, 
the emptiness occupied by a new Presence. 

Matt. iii. 11: “He shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit.” 
The original idea in association with the word baptism was 
undoubtedly immersion. So the believer shall be immersed 
in the Holy Spirit, as in a new element. 

To many these phrases may suggest an experimental 
difficulty in that they have never felt anything falling on 
them, nor have they been plunged into anything, nor been 
conscious of any special visitation. The very variety of 
expression indicates a variety of method in the bestowal of 
the blessing, and therefore none need stumble. God chooses 
in some cases to permit of a sudden perception of the pres- 
ence of the Spirit; to others the presence is as silent and 
uneventful as the falling of dew. Only believe the Gift is 
from God to you. Accept it by faith, with thanksgiving, 
and in a heart that consciously cherishes nothing opposed 
to the will of God. 


enemas : 


—l3— 


SSeS 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: 
eee 
The Lord’s Words as to the Spirit’s Mission 

The greater number of the Lord’s words will be found 
in St. John’s Gospel, but with these must be examined other 
statements found in the other Gospels. 

REGENERATION.—John iii. 3, 5: “Except a man be born 
from above—except a man be born of water and of the 
Spirit he cannot see the kingdom of God.” The initial fact 
for seeing and entering into the kingdom must be the work 
of the Spirit. It is not an evolution of life, not a process, 
but a Sovereign act of God, introducing Divine Life into 
the human spirit, and thus making the one born from above 
a “partaker of the Divine Nature.” 2 Pet. i. 4. 

PRAYER FOR THE Sprrit.—Luke xi. 13: “How much more 
shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them 
that ask Him.” Prayer is a preliminary when the need is 
felt. Such will be found to be the case when there is a 
mental apprehension and recognition of the truth, an assent- 
ing of the will, but without any corresponding change of 
the heart and life. So often this has been the case where 
people have been brought up from childhood in Christian 
surroundings, and have never been through a crisis of con- 
version. In such there is an historical faith, and an intel- 
lectual perception of the Spiritual truths, but no life. Power 
to live for Christ is absent. The profession of Christianity 
has been made, the conforming to the ordinances of the 
Church has been observed, but there has been no quicken- 
ing of the soul. Hence the need of this prayer for the Spirit 
to vitalize the truths mentally apprehended, and transfer 
them from the head to the heart. 

Lire ABUNDANTLY.—John vii. 38, 39: “He that believeth 
on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his inward parts 
shall flow rivers of living water. This spake He of the 


SS Se SSS 


mm] 4am 


THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


Spirit which they that believe on Him should receive,” etc. 
This was the promise of the life abundantly, the overflow- 
ing life. Such a life of blessing was to be dependent upon 
the enthroning of the Lord at the right hand of God. After — 
the Ascension the Spirit was poured out in His Fullness, 
and now every heart that yields itself to be as a part of that 
throne will find that from beneath the throne there issue 
the rivers of living water. 

RENEWALS.—John vi. 63: “It is the Spirit that quicken- 
eth.” The Spirit is the Life-giver. He alone can vitalize 
everything. He gives life—He gives life abundantly—He 
quickens, step by step. The Apostle Paul speaks of Re- 
newal as the daily need of the Soul. 

- Tue Apipinc ComrorTEr.—John xiv. 16: “I will pray: 
the Father and He shall give you another Comforter, that 
He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth— 
He dwelleth with you and shall be in you.” This is the 
promise of the permanent abiding and indwelling ; no longer 
a visitation followed by withdrawal, but the eternal 
abiding. 
4 Tue Teacuer.—John xiv. 26: “He shall teach you all 
things, and bring all things to your remembrance whatso- 
ever I have said unto you.” And the function of the Spirit 
is to instruct in the meaning of Scripture, which He has 
caused to be written, and to apply it to our every-day cir- 
cumstances. “All things” includes everything concerning 
the life we are living here, not merely the Spiritual side of 
it, but the Material, the Moral, the Mental, the Social, the 
Commercial. He is interested in every little detail, in every 
great and important transaction. He knows all the affairs 
of a human life and can teach in every particular. He 
waits to be asked to “teach.” 


oe 1 5 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
——oo—————————E—E===E=_]_——_____ 

‘Further, in Mark xi. 11: “It is not you that speak, but 
the Holy Spirit ;” there is the promise of the provision for 
the emergency of persecution and sudden arrest. Then the 
disciples would have to defend the truth unexpectedly, and 
without preparation, and then would be given the words 
which the Holy Spirit teacheth. 

Witness Brarer.—John xv. 26: “He shall bear witness 
of Me.” To the heart of the believer He will bring the 
knowledge of the facts concerning the Lord, being Himself 
the witness of the facts as they have transpired. 

Witt Convicr.—John xvi. 7, 11: “He will convict the 
world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. Of sin, 
because they believe not on Me; of righteousness, because 
I go to the Father ; of judgment, because the Prince of this 
world is judged.” Convict, or convince, or reprove, not 
Convert. Not of SINS, but of SIN. Of what sin? Of 
the sin of Unbelief, which is the root of all other sin. There 
is no need for the Spirit’s convincing of known sins, the 
human conscience does that; but the right attitude of the 
heart toward the Crucified and risen Lord, and toward the 
Prince of this world, Satan, can only be brought about by 
the definite action of the Holy Spirit of God. 

The word Corivict has a forcible meaning. It is “a 
judicial investigation in order to arrive at a decision and 
carry out a sentence.” Here the Spirit is spoken of as 
coming to investigate and pass sentence on the Sin of Un- 
belief in Christ, wherever found. Unbelief is, alas! all 
too common in Christians on many phases of Christ’s will 
and word. It is a truth not applicable only to the unsaved, 
but to all, more or less. He is perpetually at work to con- 
vict of not believing in Jesus. “This is the work of God 
that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.” John vi. 29. 


LL SSS SSS SSS CHE SS 


—16— 


THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 


The three facts for conviction are: My sin, Christ’s 
righteousness, God’s judgment. 

He Witt Guipe.—John, xvi. 13: “He shall guide you 
into all truth, for He shall not speak of Himself, but what- — 
soever He shall hear, that shall He speak, and He will shew 
you things to come.” Here is the connection of the Spirit 
with the throne of the Father, communicating what He shall 
hear, and revealing the future; ; being the Spirit of Prophecy. 

He Witt Groriry.—John xvi. 14: “He shall glorify Me. 
He shall take of mine and shall shew it unto you.” The 
word “glorify” means “to make much of another.” The 
Spirit will make much of Me, magnify Me. Convicting of 
sin will be followed by making much of the Saviour from 
sin. Guiding the believer will also mean “making much” 
of Him as Lord and Master. The three prominent sen- 
tences are, He shall convince the world; He shall guide > 
you; He shall glorify Me. How shall the first and third © 
be accomplished? By the second. Only let the church 
of God be fully guided and indwelt by the Spirit, then the 
glorifying of Christ will produce the conviction of the world 
with regard to its sin in His rejection. What is true of the 
Church must be true of the individual believer. So it be- 
comes each one to see to it that he is guided into all truth, 
in conduct as well as doctrine, in order to the carrying out 
of the will of God in the world. 

__.To Be Recetvep.—John xx. 22: “Receive ye the Holy 
Spirit. » This was the word of the Risen Lord on the 
evening of that resurrection day, when He met the disciples 
in the upper room, and shewed them His hands and His 
feet, explaining to them the meaning of His death on the 
cross for them. As He breathed upon them they were to 
inhale His very life, and in that fuller endowment go forth 
Sansa 
—17— : 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


into the world accomplishing the will of God. “As the 
Father hath sent Me, so send I you.” 

ENDOWMENT OF Power.—Luke xxiv. 49: “Behold I send 
forth the Promise of the Father, but tarry in Jerusalem until 
ye be endued with power from on high.” For “endued,” 
read “enmantled.” A mantle is to be thrown over them as 
an investiture of power, that would make them able to wit- 
ness for Him during His absence. 

Acts i. 4: “Wait for the Promise of the Father.” Verse 
8, “Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Spirit is come 
upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto Me,” etc. 

How much of this great group of promises does the 
reader know experimentally? Might it not be worth while 
to go through, line by line, to ascertain how far the mission 
of the Spirit has been fulfilled along these declarations? 


THE RELATION OF THE TWO GIFTS 

The Lord Jesus accomplished the work of atonement, 
by which He put away sin and provided pardon for the guilt 
of it, cleansing from the power of it, and reconciling the 
sinner to God, thus making possible the manifestation of 
God to the believer. The work of the Lord Jesus on the 
cross is for the world; the work of the Holy Spirit is in the 
believer while in the world. The Holy Spirit transfers the 
results of the work of the atonement from the throne to 
the heart and life here. He imparts these results in all their 
phases, and so produces the holy life. In order to this: 

Gen. vi. 3: He strives with the human conscience, con- 
vincing of sin and pleading with it to return to God. 

John iti. 5: He begets. 

1 Cor. ii. 10: He searches the hea to disclose its natural 
tendency, and change it. 


SEE REINS se ESR) Woe Uh ese ane SRO EO Ps LOO UOT Cea it 
THE TWO-FOLD GIFT OF GOD 
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I Cor. vi. 11: He sanctifies the believer, making him like 
Chast i Character. Si 4) | 

Gal. v. 22, 23: He causes fruit to be borne to God in the 
daily life. 

2 Cor. ili. 18: He transforms into the image of the Lord. 
He takes possession of the body, as the temple of God; and, © 
enshrined in the spirit, He controls the soul and body, and 
preserves all blameless unto the coming of the Lord. 


Names and Titles 


His names and titles indicate His character and offices, 
as do the names and titles of our Lord Jesus. Here are 
some of them. 


In relation to the Father :-— 
Matt. iii. 16: The Spirit of God. 
2 Cor. iii. 3: The Spirit of the living God. 
1 Cor. vi. 11: The Spirit of our God. 
Matt. x. 20: The Spirit of your Father. 


In relation to the Son :— 
Rom. viii. g: The Spirit of Christ. 
Gal. iv. 6: The Spirit of His Son. 
Acts xvi. 7: The Spirit of Jesus. 
John xiv. 15: Another Comforter. 


His own essential Deity :— 
2 Cor. iii. 18: The Lord the Spirit. 
Heb. ix. 14: The Eternal Spirit. 


Name expressing an attribute :— 
The Holy Spirit. 


EEE 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
———————— EET 
He is also spoken of as:— 

Rom. viii. 2: The Spirit of Life. 

Rom. i. 4: The Spirit of Holiness. 

Rom. viii. 15: The Spirit of Adoption. 

Eph. i. 13: The Spirit of Promise. 

Eph. i. 17: The Spirit of Wisdom. 

Heb. x. 29: The Spirit of Grace. 

Rev. xix. 10: The Spirit of Prophecy. 

1 Pet. iv. 14: The Spirit of Glory. 


As the Spirit of Holiness He cleanses and sanctifies, 
1 Cor. vi. 11; He lusts against the flesh, Gal. v. 17; He 
mortifies the members, Rom. viii. 13. 

As Spirit of Wisdom He leads us, Rom. Vili. 14; and we 
walk in the Spirit, Gal. v. 25. 

As Spirit of Grace He helps our infirmities and makes 
intercession, Rom. viii. 26. 

As Spirit of Truth He bears witness, Rom. viii. 16; tes- 
tifies of Christ, John xv. 26; and searcheth all things, 1 Vor: 
i. 10. 

As Spirit of Prophecy He reveals things to come, John 
xvi. 13; and reveals things prepared, 1 Cor. ii. 9, 10. 

As Spirit of Promise He asks according to the will of 
God, Rom. viii. 27. 

As Spirit of Glory He will redeem the body, Rom. viii. 
23; and raise the dead, Rom. viii. II. 

The symbols used of Him are Fire, penetrating and 
testing, Matt. iii. 11; Water, life-giving and refreshing, 
John vii. 38, 39; Win, mysterious, mighty, John ii. 8; 
O1L, consecrating, anointing, 1 John ii. 27; Dew, silently 
refreshing and blessing. 


—Z0— 


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RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 


CHAPTER II 


THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE HOLY SPIRIT TO THE 
LORD JESUS 


EBELLION had entered this world in its origi- 
nal state, when Satan, known as Lucifer, is be- 
lieved to have occupied it, as the Leader of 
Divine worship. After the unknown period of 
desolation, described in Gen. i. 2, renovation took place, as 
described in Gen. 1. 3-31, the details of which occupy the 
remainder of the chapter; and the new occupant, Man, was 
placed in possession. Before this, it appears to have been 
arranged in the counsels of the Most High that the Son of 
God should be responsible for dealing with rebellion, should 
it appear in this world, bringing about a settlement of any 
needed legal claims by atonement, and so reconciling man 
to God—(not God to man). 

In 1 Peter i. 20, He is spoken of as “The Lamb fore- 
known before the foundation of the world,” suggesting the 
announcement to the unfallen heavenly hosts of the great 
scheme of wonderful mercy and grace. In all this the Holy 
Spirit was a partner, and was in perfect harmony with the 
scheme. 

Man was created. Man fell under the power of the 
tempter, and rebellion against God re-appeared. Man 
needed redemption, regeneration, and reconciliation. He 
was made in the image of Christ: Christ was the image of 
the invisible God; so “Christ was sent in the likeness of 
sinful flesh, and for sin” (Rom. viii. 3). This is the accu- 


2] 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


rate phrasing of the incarnation ; and we here begin to note 
the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the Lord. 


I. The Incarnation of the Lord 


Matthew i. 18-20: Mary was found with child of the 
Holy Ghost (note verse 1, “The book of the generation of 
Jesus Christ”). Luke i. 35: “The Holy Spirit shall come 
upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow 
thee ; wherefore also that which is to be born shall be called 
Holy, the Son of God.” The Spirit begat the Son of God, 
Jesus of Nazareth. He is “the only begotten of the 
Father” (John i. 14). “His only begotten Son” (John iii. 
16). This wondrous fact is further referred to in Heb. x. 
5, 6, quoted from Psalm xl. 6-8. “When He cometh into 
the world He said, A body didst Thou prepare Me;” in the 
Psalm the words are “Mine ears hast Thou digged.” The 
meaning appears to be—that He was prepared to be a per- 
petual servant, to do the will of God in all things, even to 
being made an offering for Sin. Thus the Lord visited 
man in order to save him from the results of his rebellion 
and fall, and in so doing to place him in a position infinitely 
higher than that of unfallen Adam. 


II. His Boyhood 


Luke ii. 40: “The child grew, and waxed strong in Spirit, 
filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.” 
Luke ii. 52: “Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in 
favor with God and man.” The two passages indicate 
mental growth, physical development, and spiritual growth. 
No further details are granted us. 


—Z2—— 


RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 


The Holy Spirit controlled and directed this growth, and 
made Him the perfectly developed Son of Man. | 


III. His Baptism 


is narrated by all four Evangelists, and the descent of the — 
Holy Spirit like a dove described. Apparently this was 
visible to Jesus and John the Baptist only, marking Him 
out as the Messiah, the Son of God. The four passages 
are Matthew iii. 16, 17; Mark i. 10, 11; Luke iii. 21, 22; 
JOU 1.532) 33. 


IV. The Sealing 


John vi. 27: “Him hath God the Father sealed.” John’s 
remarkable expression is based on an old Jewish custom 
still maintained, of a Rabbi examining and sealing, or 
marking, every joint of meat offered for sale to Jewish 
purchasers. 

In the verse quoted the Lord had been saying, “Labour 
not for the meat that perisheth, but for the meat which 
abideth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall 
give you, for Him the Father even God hath sealed.” He 
was given to be the life of the world, first as the Sacrifice 
for Sin, to remove the Law’s death-penalty, and then to be™ 
the daily food for the believer, thro’ faith. Therefore He 
has been under the inspection and scrutiny of God, who 
has announced Him fit for the great purposes of giving 
and maintaining life. At His baptism the Spirit of God 
descended, and the Voice from heaven was heard announc- 
ing, “Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well pleased.” 

The Spirit thus sealed Him, and He came forth under 
the public eye to give life, to break the bread of life, to give 


—LZ3— 


inimical dei ci ch a 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
————————eeeee—————eeeee eee 
Himself. Two groups had witnessed His baptism by John, 
the larger and interested group, who had been attending 
the preaching, and whose hearts had been stirred by the 
powerful ministry, many of whom had been baptized in 
Jordan confessing their sins. The other and much smaller 
group was composed of Pharisees, deputies from the San- 
hedrim at Jerusalem, watching the progress of the startling 
events, and wondering at the Baptist’s announcement of the 
imminent advent of the Messiah. He came, and instead 
of being associated with, and identified by them, He went 
down to the Jordan and was numbered amongst the sinners. 
This stamped Him in their eyes as an Imposter, and they 
refused Him all recognition and faith. “None of the 
Pharisees were baptized of Him.” 

But God the Father by the descent of the Holy Spirit 
sealed Him as the sent one, and endorsed the position He 
had taken before and amongst the people. His humility, 
meekness, and association with sinners marked Him as the 
competent Saviour. 


V. The Temptation 


The description of this scene, as given by the three Evan- 
gelists, must be put together. The temptation immediately 
followed the baptism and the sealing of the Spirit. Luke 
iv. 1: “And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the 
Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness during 
forty days, being tempted of the devil.” Matt. iv. 1: “Then 
was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness.” Mark 
i. 12: “Straightway the Spirit driveth Him forth into the 
wilderness.” 

(a) He was full of the Spirit, therefore able to receive 


EDP SRT DEE SS RE SERIE SIE TEI LES EN IEE RED A RIE LSE ELI EEE EI TEESE EESTI SET NE ET PENT MTT LEIA 
—Z4— 


RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 


at any moment any communication of the will of God and 
to fulfil it. | 

(b) As man’s representative He must meet man’s great 
foe, inasmuch as He has invaded the scene of the triumph. _ 
of the adversary, in order to wrest his victory from him. 

(c) He was led—implying the full surrender of His will 
to God. 

(d) Led up—signifying that He was about to enter a. 
higher experience than heretofore. Driven—indicating a 
shrinking, a reluctance, arising from His knowledge of the 
desperate encounter about to be entered into; yet going for- 
ward, consciously guided and sustained by the Spirit. In- 
tense was the suffering of meeting the foe; yet more intense 
the joy of doing the Father’s will. This meeting with Satan » 
was not accidental, but planned by the Holy Spirit. , 


V. The Anointing 


Acts x. 38: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth, who went 
about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed of 
the devil.”” When the Spirit descended upon Him at the 
Jordan He was not only sealed and filled, but anointed for 
the blessed service of saving from sin and Satan. 

This word presents another phase of the Spirit’s work— 
not another stage of it. This was the fulfillment of the 
prophecy contained in Isaiah xi. 2: “The Spirit of the Lord 
shall rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understand- 
ing, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, 
and of the fear of the Lord.” 

This threefold enduement corresponds to the statement 
of His growth given in Luke i., viz., wisdom and under- 
standing for the intellectual side of His Life, counsel and 


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THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
—————eEEaEaEaEaEamamnBaBnB>RDBapEaol)lIhm [— mmp™=aE=E==E=||EPYS==E=E=S=EST_—OEl 
might for the physical and executive, knowledge and fear 
of the Lord for the spiritual life. Thus equipped, He 
stepped forth to do the will of God, and reveal the love and 
power of God in deliverance out of the kingdom of Satan. 


VII. The Ministry 


Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee and 
commenced His ministry of blessing. Entering the Syna- 
gogue of Nazareth, as recorded in Luke iv. 16-21. He stood 
up to read Scripture, and found the place where it was 
written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He 
hath anointed Me. . . .,” and then follows the description 
of the five classes of persons to whom He is sent, and the 
purpose towards them. 

(A) “To preach good tidings to the poor,’—the badly off. 
Sin impoverishes. 

(B) “To heal the broken-hearted.” Sin crushes hearts. 

(c) “To proclaim release to the captives’—the bound. 
Sin enslaves. 

(0) “To proclaim recovering of sight to the blind;” the 
god of this world hath blinded the minds of men that believe 
not. 

(£) “To set at liberty them that are bruised.” 

(F) “To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” 


The badly off, broken-hearted, bound, blind, bruised— 
these are the subjects of the Spirit-filled ministry. And 
when people take their right places in the class to which 
they belong, the Lord can exercise His power in their sal- 
vation. 

Leaving Nazareth, He went to Capernaum, and in the 


—20— 


anne 
RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 
—————————— 
Synagogue there He was confronted by a demon-possessed 
man, probably an ordinary and regular attendant, whose _ 
condition was unsuspected because he had never before been’ 
known to disturb public worship. The entry of the Lord 
aroused the enemy, and there was a short, sharp conflict, in 
which the Lord was victorious, and delivered the one op- 
pressed by Satan. His methods would not be always popu- 
lar: as, for instance, when He bade the woman, whom Satan 
had bound eighteen years, stand out in the centre of the 
synagogue congregation, that He might loose her from her 
bondage. Frequently He wrought the needed deliverance in 
public, as the result of some act indicating an obedient sur- 
render of will to Him. 

Would not a Spirit-filled Ministry in the Church of God 
to-day be more discerning of the presence and power of the 
enemy in possession of human lives and binding even true 
worshippers ? 


VIII. His Inner Joy 


Though “a man of sorrows,” because of the ceaseless 
pressure of the unspeakable needs of those around Him, 
He had an undisturbed joy: Luke x. 21: “In the same hour 
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I thank Thee, 
O Father.” This joy was the fruit of the Spirit in His holy 
soul and the strength of His daily life. “The joy of the 
Lord is your strength.” 


IX. His Crucifixion 


The Holy Spirit had a deep and wondrous connection 
with the cross of Calvary: Heb. ix. 14: “Who through the 
eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God.) one 


SS Tn 


ma, ae 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


sacrifice of Christ as an offering of a sweet-smelling savour 
to God and as an atonement for sin was the work of the 
indwelling Holy Spirit. How fitting that the same Spirit 
should lead to an acceptance of this atonement for sin. | 


X. The Resurrection 


As with the death of the Lord, so with the resurrection, 
the Holy Spirit raised Him: Rom. i. 4: “Declared to be 
the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holi- 
ness by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 
Rom. viii. 11: “If the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus 
from the dead dwell in you.” Though not explicitly stated, 
the inference from these and similar Scriptures may justly 
be the close association of the Holy Spirit with those trium- 
phant facts of our Lord’s victory over death. 


XI. The Ministry after the Resurrection 


The Lord, who was the Spirit-filled One during the 
earthly lifetime of humiliation and suffering, is equally so 
after resurrection.. Acts i. 2: “After that He had given 
commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom 
He had chosen, . . . appearing unto them by the space 
of forty days.” What was true of the Head of the Church 
will be equally true of the members. Was He under the 
gracious guidance of the blessed Spirit, so shall the Church 
be; for her ministry here in the time of temptation, trial 
and sorrow; for her ministry hereafter in the day of resur- 
rection and glory. How important to know the Spirit, to 
understand His working and His will, that we may enter 
all the more fully into His plans and thoughts by-and-by. 


RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 
———————————— 
XII. The Lord’s Declaration concerning His own Life 

The Gospel of St. John gives the revelation of the Lord’s | 
inner life as the Sent One of the Father. Looking first at 
the statements concerning Him (a) ; connect with them the 
groups of texts giving His own words (b) :— | 

(a) oa i. 1. “The Word was God.” 

10. “The world was made by Him.” 
: ““ “He came to the world.” 
iy “ “The world knew Him not.” 
14. “The Word was made flesh.” 
iii 16. “God so loved the world that He gave 
him,” 
« « 17, “God sent Him to save the world.” 
34. “Therefore He whom God hath sent 
speaketh the words of God, for 
He giveth not the Spirit by 
measure.” 


As the Spirit-filled One He came to do the will of God. 
He says :-— 
(b) iv. 34—“My meat is to do the will of Him that sent 
Me. 33 
. 19, 30—‘“The Son can do nothing of Himself.” 
30—“I seek not mine own will, but the will of 
Him that sent Me.” 
Vi. 38—“I am not come to do Mine own will, but 
the will of Him that sent Me.” 
Vii. 16—‘“My teaching is not Mine, but His that sent 
Me.” 
Vill. 29—‘“He that sent Me is with Me.” 
s0—‘“I seek not Mine own glory.” 


nse SE SS 


leaty Lo anes 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


be 36—“‘Say ye of Him whom the Father hath sanc- 
tified and sent into the world...” 

xii. 49-50—“I spake not from Myself, but the Father 
which sent Me, He gave Me 
commandment what I should say 
and what I should speak.” 

xiv. 16—“The words that I say unto you, I speak not 
from Myself, but the Father 
abiding in Me doeth His works.” 

xx.  2I—‘‘As My Father hath sent Me, so send I you.” 


These closing words are of overwhelming importance 
to us. 

The Lord was upholding all things in creation by the word 
of His power, for by Him all things were consisting. He 
was the Master Workman (Prov. viii. 30, R. V.), diligent, 
competent, responsible. But the time came when, at the 
Father’s bidding, He should give up all such work, with 
its glory and honor, and come in the likeness of man, to 
undertake an altogether different work—that of making 
atonement for sin. 

For this He was set apart by the Father, and by Him 
filled with the Holy Spirit. This is the meaning of “sancti- 
fied” in John x. 36. No idea of cleansing for holiness is 
attached to the phrase; simply the idea of one set apart, 
fitted, filled, for the carrying out of a Divine plan in and 
for the world, to accomplish which He relinquished the posi- 
tion hitherto occupied. 

When the work was about to be accomplished He prayed, 
“Father, glorify Thou Me with the glory which I had with 
Thee before the world was.” He prayed to be received back 
into the position originally occupied by Him. When He 


—30— 


nec ee 
RELATIONSHIP OF HOLY SPIRIT TO LORD JESUS 
eos, 
ascended, how superb the welcome back! how magnificent 
the acclamations of the unfallen heavenly hosts! 

Now He says, “As the Father hath sent Me even so send 
I you.” Do we understand the position? Do we accept 
the equipment? Do we renounce all we have hitherto been 
engaged in, of the flesh and sin, in order to be His Sent 
Ones, thus to be Sanctified?’” Do we take up the work 
until we, too, shall have finished it, and shall be welcomed — 
home? 


XIII. The Present Ministry 


And now from the right hand of Power, the throne of 
God, He maintains a twofold ministry—one for us and one 
toward us. The one for us is that of intercession: Heb. Vii. 
25: “He ever liveth to make intercession for them.” 

The other is that mentioned by John the Baptist (John i 
33), “The same is He that baptizeth in the Holy Ghost.” 
It is His great and gracious work to pour out on the Church 
the Mighty Holy Spirit of God in his fullness for the filling 
of all believers: Col. ii. 9: “In Him dwelleth all the fullness 
of the Godhead bodily, and in Him ye are made full.” 


pags US 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


CHAPTER IIT 


TO BEGET AND BEAR WITNESS 


HE Holy Spirit has been sent into the world 

on a specific mission for the glory and glad- 

ness of the Lord Jesus Christ. As Eliezer, of 

Damascus, was sent by Abraham to Padan- 
Aram to fetch Rebekah from her home to be the wife of 
Isaac, so has the Holy Spirit come to bring to Christ, the 
only Begotten Son of God, the Church, His Bride. To 
accomplish this He has much to do, and His gracious minis- 
try will have many phases. He is the Administrator of the 
affairs of God here on earth. He has to communicate and 
apply the work of Christ to the heart and conscience of the 
sinner, and thus win him for Christ. 

To Brecet. He begins this work by striving with the con- 
science, in order to convict of sin. Gen. vi. 3, “My Spirit 
shall not strive with man forever.” Neh. ix. 30, “Yet many 
years didst Thou bear with them and testifiedst against them 
by Thy Spirit through Thy prophets, yet would they not 
give ear.” John xvi. 8, “And He, when He is come, will 
convict the world in respect of sin, righteousness, and judg- 
ment.” Three matters He has to handle in relation to the 
Lord Jesus, crucified, risen, and ascended. Conviction, or 
reproof, or convincement, is not conversion necessarily. It 
is the precursor of conversion. The sin of which the world 
is guilty is its treatment of the Lord Jesus. Why is He 
rejected or despised? Why was He put to death by the 
world? It was the manifestation of human hatred to the 


eer sn SS 
—32— 


| 
. 
| 


nS 


TO BEGET AND BEAR WITNESS 


(eee SS 
Henn ee ee al 


Holy Son of God. The work of the Spirit is to convict 
human hearts of this sin, and so reveal their true condition 
and their need of the righteousness of Christ to pardon and 
put away their sin, and bring them to God. He seeks en-. 
trance and access that He may introduce the Lord Jesus as 
Lord and Saviour. Many are perfectly conscious of His 
pleading and convicting, but the resistance of the will is 
maintained, and so the work of God can go no further. The 
Spirit is working from without seeking an entrance within. 
When refusal is persistent, He may leave, never to return. 
But when the door of the will is opened He enters, and 
immediately accomplishes the great purpose, namely, the 
introduction of Christ the Life to make such an one a child 
of God, an heir of glory, a partaker of the Divine Nature. 
This is His work of begetting. In the familiar 3d of John, 
the Lord’s words are found, verses 3 and 5, “Except a man 
be born anew,” “except a man be born of water and of the 
Spirit ;” verse 6, “That which is born of the Spirit is Spirits. 
“Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born anew.” 
The Apostle Peter takes up the expression in his first epistle, 
chapter i. verse 3, “Blessed be God who, according to His 
great mercy, begat us again,’ and in verse 23, “Having been 
begotten again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, 
through the word of God.” What then is this being “be- 
gotten again”? It is the Life of God bestowed as the gift 
of the Grace of God on a sinner who has been born in sin, 
under condemnation, sentenced to death, that he may live 
not on earth as did Adam before he fell, but with God as a 
Son, partaking of the life that Christ possesses, to be con- 
formed to the image of Christ, to be with Him and like 
Him for ever. Aha 

To be “born of the Spirit,” “born again,” “born anew,” 
SRO UE UR Mca Cc A OSEU OCI eC i UP Rao otuoN Luv eitecnae wel 

—33— 


eT 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


ss 
Hanser eee eres eee ee reer eres 


“born from above,” is further defined by three negatives 
and three positives; the three negatives are given in John 
i. 12, 13, and they strike at the root of the three popular 
errors as to what is “being a Christian.” “To as many as 
received Him to them gave He the right to become children 
of God, even to them that believe on His name, which were 
begotten.” 1st. Not of blood, i. e., no heredity can impart, 
or help, towards, the New Birth. Children are not the 
Children of God because they are born of Christian Parents. 

2d. Not of the will of the flesh, i. e., no self-will can 
make a person a child of God. It is a common expression, 
“T can become a Christian when I like!” The Holy Spirit 
says NO to this, “Seek the Lord while He may be found, 
call upon Him while He is near.” 

3d. Not of the will of man, i. e., no action of a man in 
any ordinance can impart the new life or help towards its 
reception. : 

Not an inherited life from godly parents, not obtained by 
a mere act of choice or self-will, not imparted by baptism 
or any other human act, but of God. Divine sovereignty is 
the authority for the new life. The free gift of God pur- 
chased by the atonement of Christ, and offered by the Holy 
Spirit to any believer in the Lord Jesus, gives life from 
above. 

The three positives are in Roman viii. 15, 16, “Ye received 
the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The 
Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit that we are 
the children of God.” 

The first positive fact is that the Spirit makes us children 
of God. Sucha relationship must be independent of conduct. 
It can neither be formed by good conduct, nor destroyed by 
bad conduct. How many areafraid that by failure in obedi- 
LT 


m4 


ewe 


nn em 
TO BEGET AND BEAR WITNESS 
———eeeeeeeeee————OOSeee 
ence and sin, they may lose their spiritual life! It is the 
Spirit’s work to maintain what He has implanted, so that 
what is true in the natural order of things, that no behaviour 
can unmake a son, is equally true in the supernatural, a wil- 
ful son may be disinherited, but the sonship remains. 
Second positive, v. 17, “If children, then heirs.” There 


is a property to come into as a right of the lawfully begotten. 


Possessing the Father’s life, the child is entitled to share 
the Father’s property. 
. Third positive. “Inheritors of the Promises.” The prop- 
~ erty or inheritance of Christ is not merely this world, but 
the whole universe of God with all it contains. His by right 
of sonship, by right of creation, by right of redemption, He 
‘has purposed to share it with the members of the family of 
God, who have been born of the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, 
sealed with the Spirit. This opens up one of the most seri- 
ous and yet glorious questions that can occupy the attention 
of the people of God. Is there any possibility of losing the 
inheritance? On what principle is it to be divided among 
the sons of glory? Life cannot be lost, but the inheritance 
may be. A child may be an heir without being an inheritor. 
In Gal. iv. 1, the apostle points this out. “So long as the 
heir is a child, he differeth nothing from a bond servant 
though he be lord of all.” A child under age, or a child who 
has ceased to grow, whose faculties are stunted, cannot take 
possession of the property. May there not be an unper- 
ceived warning bearing on this in such passages as 1 Cor. ili. 
1-5, Heb. v. 11-14, and Rom. viii. 3-9? In all three passages 
the exhortation is concerning the danger of remaining babes 
or carnally-minded, the two phrases being identical. 

An ungrown child remains a babe in capacity, position, 


and dependence; in the eyes of the law he is a minor, un- 
po emmeneeneerennennn nena nn eS 


—35— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


able to act. The ungrown Christian is one that has not 
yielded fully to the dominating power of the presence of the 
Holy Spirit, one whose character and capacity for God are 
therefore undeveloped. How can such enter into possession 
hereafter of “the inheritance of the saints in light” in the 
same degree as will those who have yielded themselves 
wholly to the Spirit? The features of the carnal, or babe 
life, are very strongly marked, and can be easily detected in 
1 Cor. iii. 1-5. They are described as (a) stunted growth, 
(b) needing milk diet, (c) quarrelsomeness, (d) acting as 
do human beings who have no Divine life, and (e) being 
strongly denominational. In Heb. v., the other features are 
(f) sleepiness, for the word translated, dull of hearing, in 
ver. II, is otherwise translated slothful or sluggish in vi. 12, 
(g) ignorance of elementary gospel truths, (/) inability to 
teach others, (7) unexercised senses in discriminating be- 
tween right and wrong. Should not every one who reads 
these lines take time to test themselves carefully and as- 
certain the true state of their life. For instance, how many 
can sit down by the side of an unconverted person and ex- 
plain the Gospel simply, clearly, rationally? To quote Gos- 
pel texts is not teaching, but to explain the reason for the 
atonement, why God cannot pardon sin apart from the 
sacrifice of Christ, how peace has been made, what faith 
means, how a person can know whether Christ died for 
him, and all the ordinary questions that arise in the minds 
of ignorant or seeking souls. To be unable to do so is a 
sign of babyhood, is a reproach, nay, more, is a positive sin. 
The Lord expects that we receive the Spirit of wisdom and 
knowledge, and learn of Him thus, that we may be able to 
teach others. 

In Romans viii, a further group of features of this 


Oa: 7 oN 


TO BEGET AND BEAR WITNESS 


stunted life is found; self-centredness, enmity against God, 
no surrender to God’s rules for holy living; and by com- 
parison with James iv. 4, it will be seen that enmity against 
God is the same as friendship with the world. The worldly, 
selfish, self-controlled, ignorant, disobedient Christian may 
have life, be an heir, but may never be an inmheritor. Take 
a further statement in Eph. i. 14, the Holy Spirit i is called | 
“the earnest of our inheritance.” This word “earnest” 
means first instalment, pledge, guarantee. If the Holy 
Spirit, as such, be ignored, disobeyed, grieved, and given 
no position of authority and control in the heart, how is it 
possible for the second instalment of the inheritance to be 
obtained or received, save in similar proportion? 

This principle seems:to be vividly illustrated by the Lord’s 
parable of the Pounds in Luke xix. 12-27. Here is the 
picture of the nobleman about to leave for the far country, 
to be invested with royal honours, and then to return. Call- 
ing his staff of servants around him, he gives them a pound 
each with instructions to trade therewith till he returns. 
His first recorded action on returning is to summon the 
servants and ascertain how much each has gained, and then 
to administer reward in the shape of position in the adminis- 
tration of his kingdom prorata. Thus the man whose 
pound has made ten pounds has authority over ten cities, 
the one whose pound made five is over five cities, the one 
whose pound made nothing gets nothing, nay, more, he loses 
the original pound, which implies no future possibility of 
service. The nobleman is the Lord Jesus, the servants are 
His people redeemed by Him from the slavery of sin, and, 
therefore, in the holy bondage. To each one has he given 
the Scriptures, wherewith to be trading in the Spirit. In 
_ this all are alike, as contrasted with the other parable of 


Hy dul 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


Matt. xxv., where talents varying in number are given. 
Will not the future second instalment of power in the resur- 
rection life be according to the use made of this priceless 
gift? What of those Christians who, content with the bare 
knowledge of pardon and acceptance, have never searched 
the Scriptures to learn separation from the world, conse- 
cration of time, and means, and talents to Christ, and who 
know nothing practically of the mighty presence of the 
Spirit of God? May they not be likened to minors who 
have never attained to their majority, and therefore are by 
law debarred from holding and administering property 
though living at home and surrounded with all that home 
and a loving Father can bestow? ‘This aspect of matters 
will bear much prayerful examination, and should lead to 
serious heart-searching. The Lord longs to give as large a 
share as possible to each of His fellow heirs. 

What is the quality of this life imparted by the Holy 
Spirit? It is the Hory life of Christ. 1 John iii. 9, “What- 
soever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed 
remaineth in him and he cannot sin, because He is begotten 
of God.” This passage presents considerable practical diff- 
culties, and must be examined carefully in its context. A 
very brief word here only is possible. Take the definition 
of sin as given in the context. “Sin is lawlessness,” v. 4, 
i. e., a perpetual refusal to obey God and do His will. The 
life of God is absolutely and only lawful, there is no un- 
righteousness in it. It is according to the eternal principles 
of right. Whosoever, therefore, is born of God, comes 
under the law of that life, and he cannot be a wilfully per- 
sistent opponent of the will of God. To do right, as God 
reveals what is right, becomes the habit of his life, and 
must continue so, because this life is not a fitful, accidental 
relationship based on emotion or feeling, but is the perma- 
RDS UMASS aR Ras eae ac NA Sata LIAS Bi RPO CEL EA SY 

—38— : 


(camera nn nt 


TO BEGET AND BEAR WITNESS 

— 
nent, eternal fact. “Jt remains,’ it is within, kept there, 
preserved by God’s own Spirit. It is the magnificent grace 
of God that begets into such a life as this. Let that life 
dominate, grow, thrive, be fed by the Word of God and the 
Will of God, and it will utilize all the powers of mind and 

body for the glory of God. : 


TO BEAR WITNESS 


Rom. viii. 16, “The Spirit Himself beareth witness with 
our spirit that we are the children of God.” John) v.) 4; 
“Tt is the Spirit that beareth witness.” What is a witness ¢ 
One who testifies to facts, that he has seen or heard; his 
evidence is credible only according to his character. He 
who bears witness is the Spirit of truth, therefore, all He 
says is unimpeachable. Conscience is the other witness 
within, and his work is like that of account books that re- 
veal the condition of bankruptcy, but can offer no remedy. 
It was this latter witness that drove Adam and Eve to hide 
from the presence of God among the trees of the garden. 
The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, witnesses as to facts, 
and shows the remedy for the disclosed liabilities. 

1. He witnesses to the sinner of the sin he has seen and 
heard, and tells him there is no hope, no help, no improve- 
ment possible. 

2. He then proceeds to the declaration of a series of facts 
as to the Lord Jesus, the Saviour from sin. 

(a) That the Son of God, named Jesus, entered into 

human life and condition, that God might deal with 
Him as our representative. 

(b) That Jesus became a servant, showing to us what 

doing the will of God really is. 


(eee ene SERRE 


vee 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


(c) That Jesus was made Sin, that in His person all legal 
claims might be met for settlement. 

(d) That Jesus became sacrifice for sin to bear it away, 
and provide pardon on a righteous basis. 

(e) That Jesus was raised from the dead as our Security 
against any possible recurrence of the claims of the 
law against us. 


To the individual heart that listens He tells how He saw 
that one’s sin, laid upon Jesus, borne by Jesus, left in the 
grave by Jesus, and now He hears that gracious One speak- 
ing the words of pardon, reconciliation, and welcome, so 
that there may be given the new life that will make such 
an one a child of God. He uses the written Scriptures as 
the medium of communication to the human mind, and thus 
we know the security of the life, the relationship of the life, 
the future prospects of the life, the holiness of the life. 

He never varies in His witness-bearing. He cannot con- 
tradict Himself, and He rightly demands implicit faith in 
‘the accuracy of the statements He makes; for, “He that 
believeth hath life;” and it is the presence of the witness- 
bearing Spirit in the believer that makes him a witness for 
Christ to others. 


TO SEAL AND TO FILL 


CHAPTER IV 
TO SEAL AND TO FILL 


I. To Seal 


HE three following texts contain the expression 
to be considered: 
2 Cor. i. 22: “Who also hath sealed us.” 
—_ Eph. 7 13: “Ye were sealed with that Holy 
fim uf promise.” 

Eph. iv. 30: “In whom ye were sealed unto the day of 
redemption.” 

Three ideas may be associated with this word “Sealed :” 
(a) Secured, made sure; (b) Stamped with the image of 
God; (c) Inspected and pronounced fit. 


SECURED—MADE SURE 

(A) The first idea. John iii. 33: “He that hath received 
His testimony, hath set to his seal that God is true.” Im- 
agine a document drawn up, and setting forth in successive 
clauses the great array of truths concerning God and the 
sinner. 

1. THat Gop 1s Hoty, and will by no means clear the 
guilty; yet loves the sinner with an immeasurable love. 

2. THAT THE SON oF Gop, the Lord Jesus Christ, has 
undertaken the stupendous work of making atonement for 
sin, settling all the claims of the holy law on an eternally 
righteous basis. 

3. THAT A SINNER, born such and being such, is wholly 
undone and lost. 

4. THaT To Fait# is offered the great salvation wrought 
out by Christ, as the gift of God. | 
NGC RSIS ac A ees Sa SEL aa 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


5. [THAT THE TERMS of acceptance are the unconditional 
surrender of the sinner to God, spirit, soul, and body, 
acknowledging the grace of God and the overwhelming 
guilt of sin, to whom God gives eternal life, pardon of sin, 
the spirit of adoption, an inheritance among the sanctified. 

6. THAT ALL THIS is conveyed, assigned, and guaranteed 
by the divine promise and purpose, unalterable and in- 
alienable. 

This document is presented to a sinner for perusal, and 
acceptance. Does he believe it? Does he accept the gifts 
and benefits enumerated on the terms offered? ‘Then if so, 
let him sign his name in token of the same. But such signa- 
ture is of no value unless countersigned by a witness, and 
that witness is the Holy Spirit. He witnesses the signature 
and so He makes valid and secure beyond any power of 
violation the conveyance from God to the sinner of all that 
“Eternal life’ means. Thus all is sealed, and the fulfillment 
of all the covenants guaranteed. 

(B) A second idea follows this one, namely, 


STAMPED WITH THE IMAGE OF GOD. 

2 Tim. ii. 19: “Howbeit the firm foundation of 
God standeth, having this Seal, the Lord knoweth 
them that are His; and let every one that nameth 
the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.” On 
the soul of the saved one is to be impressed the image of 
the Lord that has saved. Rom. viii. 29. “Conformed to the 
image of His Son.” Such an one is marked as the property 
of the Lord, like a coin of the realm, bearing the image 
of the Sovereign, and the inscription runs round the obverse 
and the reverse of the coin. In this case the inscription of 
the Seal on the obverse, or heaven side, is “The Lord 
knoweth them that are His.” It is the idea of ownership 


—42— 


RE 


TO SEAL AND TO FILL 
| 
and recognised property, each one known to the Lord. The 
reverse inscription, to be read by the world, is “Let every 
one that nameth the name of the Lord depart from un- 
righteousness.” This must be the impress on Character, 
legible, clear, and always presented. Thus, if the question | 
be asked, “Whose is this image and superscription?” the 
answer may be immediate and unhesitating, “The Lord’s.” 
But too often the reverse side becomes indistinct, hence the 
need for continual renewal by the Spirit of God (Col. iii. 


INSPECTED AND PRONOUNCED FIT 


(c) The third idea attached to the use of the word 
“Sealed” connects with some remarks made in a previous 
chapter concerning our Lord, when spoken of as Sealed by 
God the Father, John vi. 27. It was the wonderful exami- 
nation of the Son by the Father, when the Spirit descended 
upon Him, and the Voice from heaven announced “This 
is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matt. iil. 
16, 17. Similarly for the Christian this is a momentous 
truth. For what purpose have we been born of the Spirit? 
That we may be the sons and servants of God in this world 
for awhile, and then be translated to a higher service and 
deeper communion. The Lord Jesus was the Light of the 
World; we are to be the light of the world in His absence 
from it. He gave Himself for the world—we are to give 
ourselves to Him for the world, to witness for Him in it, 
to be persecuted and opposed by it, to pull brands from 
the burning out of it, to glorify Him in it. A great calling 
to a heavenly work amid many and real difficulties. Are 
we fit? Can we do it? No self-examination can declare. 
The Holy Spirit must come and take up His abode in us, 
in order to the change of our being and heart, imparting 


nnn ena 


—W— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
eee 
the. life of Christ, testing and changing our motives, sup- 
planting our love by the Love of God, thus sealing us as 
fit for God’s use, because partakers of the Divine nature. 
Such a sealing does away with all recognition of merit, of 
self-effort, of goodness. It is Christ in us, and only Christ, 
that can make us of any service to God. The knowledge 
and understanding of the Sealing will make us say, “Yet 
not I, but Christ liveth in me,” otherwise we can accomplish 
nothing of God’s purposes. Now combine the three ideas. 
(a) Secure in Christ by the Holy Spirit; (b) bearing the 
image of Christ, by the Spirit, making us the property of 
God; and then (c) found fit by, and through, the Spirit 
for the purposes of God in the world. 

An illustration is found of much of this truth in Leviti- 
cus xiv., which contains the details of the ceremony for the 
cleansing of the leper. When the disease first appeared 
the suspect was quarantined, and kept separated outside the 
camp, so long as there was any risk of infection. After 
a cure had been effected, probably in answer to the prayers 
of the High Priest, the ceremony of cleansing was under- 
gone at the hands of the High Priest. The leper was care- 
fully and closely examined in every part, that there might 
be no undetected presence of the disease. “Search me, 
O God, and know my heart, try me, and know my thoughts.” 
Ps. cxxxix. 23. If found free of disease, then two little 
birds were taken and used as directed, typifying the identifi- 
cation of a cleansed sinner with the death and resurrection 
of Christ. Then followed, after an interval, the closing 
part of the ceremony, in which, after the presentation of 
the prescribed sin, meal, and burnt offerings, the blood of 
the sin offering was put on the right ear, hand, and foot of 
the cleansed leper, betokening the thoroughness of the ex- 


SSS SSS Ss SSSR 
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TO SEAL AND TO FILL 


amination, the removal of the disease and all its traces, and 
the life of the sin offering accepted on behalf of the sinner. 
The Blood was not so much for the cleansing as for declara- 
tion of the absence of the disease. Next came the applica- 
tion of the oil upon the blood, on the same ear, hand, and — 
foot, which was the Sealing, the ratifying, the marking of 
the cleansed man in the presence of God, by the High Priest. 
By this act he was virtually pronounced fit to return to his » 
place and work in the camp. Any one meeting him and 
seeing the blood and oil on him would know at once what 
he had been, and what he now was, and who had been 
handling him, namely, the High Priest. May there not be 
much food for thought and enquiry here, as to whether 
we are seen to be the Lord’s sealed ones, delivered from 
leprosy, saved by His power, marked by His Spirit, unto 
the day of redemption? We are secured against all possi- 
bility of being rejected finally, because of the Blood of the 
sin offering and the oil of the Holy Spirit being on us! 


II. To Fill 
What is it to be filled with the Spirit? 


1. It 1s obedience to a command, Eph. v. 18: “Be not —— 


drunk with wine, but be filled with the spirit.” Continuous 
obedience will mean continuous filling. Intermittent obedi- 
ence will mean intermittent filling. Continuous disobedience 
will mean continuous absence of filling. The Spirit of God 
has come to enter in, dwell, take possession, and keep pos- 
session, for the purposes of fulfilling the will of God. Has 
He been welcomed, listened to, yielded to, and has the whole 
being been handed over to Him? If not, then the pro- 
portion of withholding is the proportionate absence of the 
infilling. Up to your capacity, according to the measure 


pe Ae 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


of your surrendered will, He fills, moment by moment. 
According to the maintenance of the attitude of simple and 
loyal obedience He maintains the fulness. In some cases 
this infilling has been gradual, accompanied by no conscious 
experience of a sudden or remarkable nature ; simply because 
the truth, as apprehended from time to time, has been 
accepted by faith, yielded to, and received with thanks- 
giving. In such hearts there has been no controversy, no 
withholding from the Lord what was His by purchase. In 
other cases the truth of the purpose of God to fill with 
the Spirit has flashed suddenly on the mind, the will has 
bowed immediately, and the sudden taking possession of 
the inner being by the Spirit has been accompanied by a 
flood of joy, glory, peace, etc. In other cases, again, where 
the truth has been presented, and mentally accepted, there 
has been something in the life withheld, some obedience 
withdrawn, some contingency suspected, which has raised 
fear or anxiety. The Holy Spirit has not been trusted 
implicity, hence the proportionate absence of the infilling. 

“To be filled” is the birthright of every believer. Not 
to be filled is sin in every case, and must be dealt with before 
God accordingly, namely, by confession, and the removal 
of the cause. It is not so much something to be prayed for, 
as a gift to be accepted, a purpose of God to be fulfilled 
on the simple condition of obedience. 

Why is the infilling provided, and to be accepted? 
1. To develop the character of the child of God in all 
points, that he may truly and manifestly bear the image of 
Christ. Eph. v. 21: “Submitting yourselves one to another in 
the fear of God. To act as Christ did in all relationships, 
such as child, workman, friend, master, servant, companion, 
neighbor. To cultivate Him by one’s own effort is failure. 


—16— 


SRS LT TE EI I SE IIIS LE I EL LD LILLE EEL ETS 
TO SEAL AND TO FILL 


To imitate Him by one’s own effort is failure, therefore 
to be filled with the Spirit is absolutely essential. 

2. To arm us for the conflict with the world and _ its 
Prince. The Holy Spirit is absolutely loyal to the interests — 
and glory of the risen Lord Jesus Christ, and is equally 
hostile to all that opposes. This world, ruled by its Prince, 


Satan, and governed in detail by the hosts of “spirits of _ 


wickedness in heavenly places” (Eph. vi. 12), is intensely 
opposed to Him. It is utterly impossible to withstand the 
influence, ambition, position, pleasure, prospects that are 
offered, unless filled with the Spirit of God. Opposition and 
persecution have to be endured. The Lord emphatically 
said so, and experience has confirmed it all down the cen- 
turies. 

3. To win souls for God out of the world, and lead them 
to Christ. No other power can do this. Sentiment may be 
raised, emotions may be stirred by certain methods of 
speaking and singing, but there can be no permanency 
apart from the Holy Spirit’s work. He comes from the. 
Throne of God. He is empowered with the almighty power 
of God. He alone can empower a human life, and enable 
it to overcome the currents that surround it. No one ever 
turned away dissatisfied, disappointed, unhelped, unheeded, 
who was honest in heart and obedient in will. 

The filling is normal, not extraordinary; continuous, not 
spasmodic; for the accomplishing of the will of God in 
us, not for us to accomplish what we think may be the will 
of God; to work the will of God through us, not for us to do 
the work of God. And the results:—Such as are found 
in Eph. v. and vi., descriptive of family, life, happy life, 
energetic life, and prayerful life. Therefore “be filled with 
the Spirit) 


Used fa 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


CHAPTER V 


TO ANOINT 


64 E HAVE an Anointing of the Holy One.” 
I John ii. 20: “He that anointeth us is 
God+2 Cori, att 
I John ii. 27: “The Anointing which ye 
have received of Him adideth.” 

The true meaning of “Christian” is almost forgotten 
and needs reviving. The name “Christ” as applied to our 
Lord means The Anointed One. Hence the word “Chris- 
tian” must have a similar meaning attached to it. “God 
anointed Jesus of Nazareth, who went about doing good.” 
“He that anointeth us is God.” We too, then, should seek 
to know the purposes for which we have been anointed, 
and fulfill them in the power received through the anointing. 

Throughout Scripture Oil is the type of the Holy Spirit; 
the study therefore, of its use for anointing purposes will 
throw a flood of light upon the subject in hand. The 
anointing must be looked upon as another phase of the 
Spirit’s work, rather than as a stage. To many, however, 
who have never known the meaning of the anointing as an 
experience, it marks a stage in the Christian life when 
revealed and received. 


What Did Anointing with Oil Accomplish? 

(a) Anointing with holy oil separated, or set apart for 
God whatever was touched (Ex. xl. 9-14). The Tabernacle 
and all the holy vessels were in detail anointed, and were 
thereby consecrated. 

RRO AR NUR ange eR. Th 


a 


TO ANOINT 


(b) Anointing with holy oil separated to God all persons 
that were touched by it (Ex. xl. 12-14). Aaron and his 
sons were set apart for an everlasting Priesthood. 

(c) Anointing with holy oil consecrated and restored 
back to God what had been defiled and separated. 


(d) Anointing with holy oil qualified for office. In ad- —- 


dition to its use for admission to the office of Priest above 
mentioned, it was similarly used in appointing to the office 
of prophet and king (1 Kings xix. 16, and I Sam. xvi. 13) 
respectively. 

(e) Anointing with oil was the sign of honor to a guest 
at meals. Psa. xxiii. 5: “Thou anointest my head with oil.” 
The complaint of the Lord in Simon, the Pharisee’s house 
was, “My head with oil thou did’st not anoint,” Luke vii. 41. 

(f) Anointing with oil was practiced in connection with 


the healing of the sick (James v.14). . . . . “Anoint- 
ing him with oil in the name of the Lord” (See also Mark 
A ie A Be 


To sum up—six classes of persons might be anointed, 
three for official purposes, that of Prophet, Priest, and 
King; three for unofficial purposes, namely, the cleansed 
leper, the guest, and the sick. 

2 Cor. i. 21: It is God who anoints with the Holy Spirit, 
and how various may be the blessings that such an anoint- 
ing may bring to His children. Referring to the descent of 
the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Apostle Peter makes it 
plain that the gift was from the Father (Acts ii. 33). 


What Will the Anointing Accomplish Now? 


1. It delivers from the power of sin and death: It 
will heal the defective leprous life (Rom. viii. 3). The 
law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath set me free 


EY 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


from the law of sin and death” (verse 13). “By the Spirit 
ye mortify the deeds of the body.” It is the great power 
against sin and death, the preservation against temptation 
—the instruction as to what, and what is not, sin. 

2. It gives welcome and joy (Psa. xcii. 10). “I shall 
be anointed with fresh oil’ (Isa. lxi. 3). . . “The oil 
of joy for mourning.” As the guest of the Lord Jesus at 
His table, with the abundance of bread and the over-flowing 
cup, there will be the over-flowing joy, the anointed head, 
the shining face. He loves the cheerful company of His 
guests, because they are His own, His redeemed. The 
Holy Spirit supplies the joy, and none should ever come 
from the secret presence of the King save with the shining 
face \( Matt) wi.it7): 

3. It consecrates and sanctifies. Referring once more 
to the cleansing of the leper, when in three places the 
healed man was anointed with oil, the anointed ear repre- 
sents that the head, the mind, the thoughts, the senses 
located in the head, which are the avenues communicating 
with the external world, have been afresh renewed for holy 
occupation; the anointed hand—that all manner of service 
and activity will henceforth be holy, touching nought but 
what the Lord commands, holding nothing but for Him, 
no withering of the powers, no failure in the grasp; the 
anointed foot, that the walk will be henceforth with God, 
keeping step with the Spirit, running in the way of His 
commandments, hastening on His errands, the servant 
watching daily at the gates, waiting at the posts of the doors. 
The whole man, spirit, soul and body, consciously appro- 
priated by God, because yielded to God, and by that same 
anointing “preserved blameless unto the arrival of the Lord 
Jesus” (1 Thess. v. 18), “to be presented faultless before the 
presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24). 


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TO ANOINT 
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4. It qualifies for the Prophetical office. This office is 
defined in 1 Cor. xiv. 3: “Speaking unto edification, and 
comfort and consolation ;” and is open to men and women 
alike under the control of the Holy Spirit. “Edification,” 
that is building up the faith, that it becomes stronger, more 
able to obtain the promises of God, and attempt greater 
things for God. 

“Comfort” and “consolation,” administering the words of 
hope and cheer among the perplexed, tried, afflicted, tempted 
ones, “ministering the Spirit” (Gal. iii. 5), the Comforter, 
and so communicating the gracious thoughts of God. How 
few, comparatively, have believed for the anointing for this 
office, and what room there is for such gracious ministry 
day by day. 

5. [t qualifies for the Priestly office. Each believer is 
called to the priestly office, but few have received the 
anointing for it. For the expansion of this subject, study 
Lev. i.-v., where priestly work was to handle and present 
the ifices to God on behalf of the offerers. Ex. xxviii.: 
To order the light in the tabernacle—symbol of testimony. 
Ex. xxix.: To offer incense morning and evening upon 
the golden altar before the Lord—symbol of prayer and 
intercession. Num. x.: To blow the silver trumpets, for 
solemn assembly, for marching, for alarms, for ushering 
in all public festivals and feasts, preceding the army in the 
hattle-fields—symbol of the truth that the atonement of 
Christ must be the keynote of all worship, watchfulness, 


warning and joy (Josh, iii.). To blow the rams-horn _ 


._ trumpets of doom round the condemned city—symbol of the 
fact that the wrath of God is to be announced with the 
same distinctness as the mercy of God. To carry the ark 
of God throughout all the journeyings—symbol of the 


a SESS SS TES CSPI IS SS ESN PS SS SEH ST STE ROU SSSR 
i —5i1— ; 


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THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


lifting up of Christ in all the walks of life. So now for the 
priestly office, the anointing of the Spirit is needed for the 
continual presentation of Christ before God as the only 
hope of the Church, and as the sinbearer, and the trespass 
offering for the individual, the only ground of communion 
and fellowship. How much more might be done than is 
being done by the people of God. Then there is the main- 
tenance of the testimony concerning the Lord, and the 
ceaseless intercession in His name for others. What “new- 
ness of life’ may yet be experienced by receiving such an 
Anointing! In all war against sin, and worship——Christ ; 
in all social and family joy—Christ ; in all public assemblies 
of His people the one theme—Christ, “the Alpha and 
Omega.” It is priestly work to maintain all this, and then 
in all conflict, whether offensive or defensive, victory 
through Christ. 

6. It qualifies for the Kingly office. The reigning here- 
after with Christ, the administration of power for Him, 
will be in virtue of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. As 
in the case of the Lord Himself, so with each individual 
Christian, the ceaseless loving, blessed work of the Spirit 
is essential, qualifying and equipping, energising and con- 
trolling. 

This anointing abideth. “The anointing that ye have re- 
ceived of Him, abideth in you, and ye need not that anyone 
teach you; but as His anointing teacheth you, concerning 
all things, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, ye abide 
in Him” (1 John ii. 27). This comprehensive verse sums 
up the leading facts concerning the permanency and the 
results of the anointing. 

ist. Ir Apiwetu. The official anointing of prophet, 
priest, and king, needed no repetition, it remained perma- 


eS 


aN Sa 


es 


TO ANOINT 


nent. So with the believer now; only accept the facts set 
forth in His word, and praise God for them, yielding the 
heart and life wholly to them. There is no fickleness in the 
mind of God concerning the positions into which He brings 
His people. They are ever His mouthpieces, to show 
forth His glory and declare His wondrous works: they are 
ever to be His great company of worshippers, holy min-_ 
istrants, filling the presence with the sweet odors of thanks- 
giving, praise, and prayer; they are ever to be the executive 
of His Almighty Power, “the heirs of God, the joint heirs 
with Christ.” 

and. Ir MAKES US INDEPENDENT OF HUMAN OPINION AND 
REASONING. “Ye need not that anyone teach you.” ‘There 
is no hint here of belittling the teaching in the Church of 
God, but rather the truth that the Holy Spirit teaches 
independently of all human wisdom and intellect, and so the 
anointed one is found fearless in his principles, unmoved 
by his circumstances, undeterred in his obediance to God, 
and in his determination to weigh things in the balance of 
the sanctuary, and is therefore by God in the pathway of 
holy service. 

3rd. Ir TeacHes. ‘There is the definite guidance, the 
ever-increasing imparting of the knowledge of the Will of 
God. 

4th. Ir MAINTAINS THE ABIDING IN Curist. Chief of 
all, the union between Christ and His people is preserved 
by the anointing. The branches of the vine are part of the 
vine; they have no separate existence, and no fitful union. 
Is this known? Is it understood? Is it accepted as the 
revelation of part of the mission of the Holy Spirit thus 
to act, and maintain, and enrich? 


AN 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


For the closing illustration, look at the story of David, 
the shepherd-boy, as given in 1 Sam. xvi. Sent for one 
day from the fields, he was anointed by Samuel in the 
presence of his brethren, for the throne of Israel. The 
simple ceremony,’ solemnly performed, was a revelation to 
the lad of God’s great purposes for him. They were all 
unsought by David, and unexpected, but as he bowed his 
head before Samuel, the Anointed Prophet, he accepted by 
faith all that was involved in his own anointing. It brought 
no immediate change in his circumstances, it made him in no 
way different to the eyes of others, but the anointing re- 
mained, it was permanent, and it made him independent 
of all human opinion about himself. Presently the Philis- 
tine war broke out, and the armies of Saul were powerless 
before those of Goliath. The “anointed one” appeared on 
the scene, and immediately joined issue with the giant. 
| Way? He knew that he could not fall under the sword 
of the enemy, the anointing taught him he must come to 
the throne. The gibes and reproofs of his eldest brother 
Eliab could not make him change his purposes. 

Saul’s doubts about him, followed by his clothing him in 
his armour from head to foot, made him immovable in the 
purpose of God. Go forward he must, but wear that 
armour he could not; it was not needed. The anointing 
taught him why to go, and how to go, and kept him abiding 
in God, established in the faith. 

When later on the darker days of bitter persecution and 
cruel outlawry threw their dark, cold shadows over him, 
what sustained him? The Anointing that he had received. 
So in faith and patience, in suffering and scorn, in rejection 
and poverty, he waited, ever learning more and more of 
God, until the coronation day dawned and he was acclaimed 
King of Israel. | 


RDA SRN ESL LISS SA LEI TES SEE ALL DEL LEICA IEL EE TI POT OEE ELS ETE EE TEE DE SA EDEL LET EDA A, 
Habs ML 


TO ANOINT 


And now let us quietly sit before the Lord arid enquire 
of Him as to the anointing, what it is to teach us; how it 
is to sustain our hearts and hopes amid all the trials and 
storms ; how it is to make us effective for God, until we shall 
sit down with the Lord Jesus, THE ANOINTED ONE, in His 
throne for evermore. 


pe Aue? 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


CHAPTER VI 


THE HOLY ANOINTING OIL 


N THE illustrations of the anointing referred 
to in the previous chapter, it is important to 
notice one special variation in the use of oil 
olive, namely, in the anointing of the priests of 
theAaronic priesthood for tabernacle and tem- 

ple service. Not pure oil was used on this occasion, but a 
compound, specially ordained of God, and specially prepared 
for the exclusive use of the tabernacle and temple service, 
called “The Holy Anointing Oil.” Its description is given 
in Exodus xxx. 22-33 :— 

“Moreover the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Take 
thou also unto thee the chief spices, of flowing myrrh five 
hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even 
two hundred and fifty, and of sweet calamus two hundred 
and fifty, and of cassia five hundred, after the shekel of 
the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: and thou shalt 
make it an holy anointing oil, a perfume compounded after 
the art of the perfumer; it shall be an holy anointing oil. 

“And thou shalt anoint therewith the tent of meeting and 
the ark of the testimony. And the table and all the vessels 
thereof, and the candlestick and the vessels thereof, and 
the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering with all 
the vessels thereof, and the laver and the base thereof. 

“And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most 
holy: whatsover toucheth them shall be holy. And thou 
shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and sanctify them, that 


—SO— 


THE HOLY ANOINTING OIL 


they may minister unto Me in the priest’s office. And 
thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This 
shall be an holy anointing oil unto Me throughout your 
generations. Upon the flesh of man it shall not be poured, 
neither shall ye make any other like it, according to the 
composition of it; it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. 
Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth 
any of it upon a stranger, shall be cut off from his people.” 

The compound consisted of four spices mixed with pure 
olive oil, namely, 500 of pure myrrh, 250 of sweet cinna- 
mon, 250 of sweet calamus, and 500 of cassia. The basis, 
oil olive was the type of the Holy Spirit as the Third Person 
of the Adorable Trinity, and the spices would serve to 
typify certain features of the character of the Lord Jesus, 
the Second Person of the Trinity, which, taken hold of by 
the Spirit, are to be imparted to those who are anointed for 
the everlasting “Priesthood unto God.” 


Of Myrrh 500 Shekels 


Myrrh was a spice spontaneously flowing from a certain 
shrub, bitter to the taste, but possessing healing, soothing ... 
properties, numbing pain, and acting as a comforter. Cant. 
i. 13; “A bundle of myrrh is my well beloved unto me.” 
Cant. v. 5: “My hands dropped with myrrh.” Psa. xiv. 
8: “All thy garments smell of myrrh.” 

During His earthly lifetime, one prominent feature in 
the character of the Lord Jesus was the spontaneity of 
His sympathy and compassion. Again and again we read 
how He was moved with compassion toward the multitudes, 
or individuals. No pressure was needed, no pleading for 
His pity. For all classes, for all conditions of need, under 
all circumstances, that heart of His yielded the wondrous 


ye 


eee 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
a 
myrrh of love and pity, and “He healed all who had need 
of healing.” Yet His methods and words were bitter to 
the taste of the Pharisee class in their religious exclusivism 
and pride. His rebuke of sin, of their sin, was bitter, 
though needful. He could not speak merely pleasant, 
soothing words to please His hearers. He was the Truth, 
and, therefore, must utter the truth of God unaltered, to 
their consternation and wrath. The Sabbath-day miracles 
drew forth their contempt and opposition to Him; but 
He went on with His blessed work as though no oppo- 
sition had been aroused. Note the different occasions for 
this expression of dislike. Luke xv. 2: “The pharisees and 
scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and 
eateth with them.” Luke xix. 7; the story of Zaccheus, 
“They all murmured, saying, He is gone in to lodge with 
a man that is a sinner.” Luke vii. 39: “This man, if he 
were a prophet, would have known who and what manner 
of woman that is that toucheth him, for she is a sinner.” 
Luke xiii. 14: “The ruler of the synagogue was moved with 
indignation.” 

The two effects were very plainly seen: on the one hand, 
the healing of the suffering hearts; and, on the other hand, 
the bitter taste of His words and actions for those who 
were arrayed against Him. Yet we cannot afford to lose 
that overflowing heart-love and its many manifestations, 
even though it ignore all the rules of so-called religion and 
society! “He is touched with the feeling of our infirmities.” 

Of Sweet Cinnamon 250 

Cinnamon was the internal bark of another shrub, fra- 
grant and sweet, suggestive of the internal sweetness of the 
Lord’s character; His meekness, gentleness, love to God, 
purity, unselfishness. He was always accessible to anyone 


el 


ba YD 


THE HOLY ANOINTING OIL 


at any hour of the day or night, never too busy, or too 
tired; never thinking people unreasonable in the demands 
they made on Him—keenly affectionate—keenly sensitive 
to wrong—full of deepest pity for the wronged and op- 
pressed, and never doing anything for the sake of display, 
or to attract attention to Himself. Such features of char- 
acter were fully seen only by the eye of the Father men 
misjudged Him, attributed impure motives to Him, but He 
went on, the undaunted, unhindered, unchangeable one. 


Of Sweet Calamus 250 


This is the pith of another shrub, sweet and fragrant. 
What was the innermost pith of the character of the 
Blessed Lord? The Will of God the Father. Psa. xl. 8. 
“Lo, I come to do Thy Will, O my God.” 

John v. 30: “I seek not mine own will, but the Will of 
Him that sent me.” John viii. 50: “I seek not mine own 
glory.” From the beginning to the end of His Life He could 
say, “My meat is to do the Will of Him that sent Me, and to 
finish His work.” All the miracles He wrought, all the de- 
liverances given, all the pains, and fevers, and leprosies 
cured—all the works of pity as they were accomplished, 
were truly the Will of God, and as such alone He wrought 
them. In Gethsemane’s hour of anguish He cried, “Not 
My will, but Thine, be done.” On the cross He prayed, 
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” 
Nothing, therefore, could interfere with His priestly minis- 
try to God, nothing could force His hand into self-willed or 
selfish action. 

Of Cassia 500 

The outer bark of a fourth shrub yielded the last named 
of the spices for the holy compound. It suggests the external 

; —59— : 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


character of our Lord. How did He appear to the crowds 
of ordinary people? His character was manifestly beautiful, 
manly, honest, upright, courageous, yet tender and unassum- 
ing. It gave courage to the weakest to draw near; little 
children had no dread of Him, strong men were glad to be 
led by Him. Demon-possessed men and women yielded to 
Him. John vii. 46, “Never man spake like this man.” 
Luke iv. 22, “They all wondered at the gracious words that 
proceeded out of His mouth.” 

Mark i. 22, “He taught them as one having authority.” 

John x. 32, No enmity was shown by Him when stoned 
in the temple courts; a courteous, simple question was put 
by Him to His adversaries, “For which of these works do 
ye stone me?” 

1 Peter ii. 23: “When He was reviled, He reviled not 
again; when He suffered, He threatened not.” 

The muititude pressed upon Him to hear. Said one, “If 
I may but touch the hem of His garment!” He was so 
approachable, so pleasant, so full of true kindliness, and, 
with it all, such force, such reserve of power, such an un- 
compromising attitude towards all hypocrisy and sin, such 
an upholding of the righteousness of the law of God. 

It was 1,000 of Sweet to 500 of bitter in the holy com- 
pound, and such must it ever be in “the Spirit of Christ.” 
The holy anointing oil, then, is the symbol of that which has 
come forth from the Father, for the anointing of His people 
for the discharge of their priestly service to Him. How we 
need such an anointing, such an imparting of these blessed 
features of the Risen Lord! What fragrance, what sim- 
plicity, what compassion, what surrendered will, what grace 
and beauty shall this precious ointment impart! 

There were two rules concerning it. The first rule was, 


(ane ESSE A IL SE TE LE ES, 


Met NESS 


THE HOLY ANOINTING OIL 


“Upon a man’s flesh shall it not be poured.” God can never | 
No culture of it, no (aceisemene of it under the best regu- 
lations, can ever bring it into harmony with God’s Spirit. 
“That which is born of the flesh, is flesh, and that which is 
born of the Spirit is Spirit.” The two are antagonistic and 
irreconcilable. Upon the holy garments as worn by the 
priests, was the holy anointing oil poured or sprinkled. As 
clothed in the garments of salvation, as covered with the 
robe of His righteousness, as accepted in the Beloved alone, 
can any one receive the anointing. 


The second rule. No imitation was to be made of it.” 


There was to be no copy of the compound for personal en- 
joyment or use, or for any imitation of priesthood. Such 
an act would be sacrilege, and be visited by condign punish- 
ment. And yet, do we see no phases of this? Are we not 
troubled by spurious consecration, by a spurious Christian- 
ity of culture, by an attempt to label as Christian that which 
has nothing of Christ in it? All such efforts to imitate the 
Spirit of Christ, are followed by dire catastrophe. God will 
have none of it. Let none be content with any attempted 
copy, but in abasement of soul, wait before Him, until He 
shall give the Spirit of Christ in all His fullness; for “If any 
man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His” (Rom. 
vii. 9). TRE rien 

Lastly, in reading Ex. xl. 9-16, note how every vessel 
of the tabernacle, large and small, was anointed with the © 
holy anointing oil. Whatever its position, value, insignifi- — 
cance, or otherwise, one perfume pervaded all. The struct- 
ure, too, the boards, bars, pillars, curtains, coverings, etc., 
were equally anointed. The dwelling-place of God, the place 
of sacrifice, the place of cleansing, the place of intercession, 


ce tel 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


the place of communion, the place of light; and lastly, the 
sons of Aaron, the priest, were all anointed with the same. 
Christ must be first and last. He must be all in all. 
Everything and everyone must speak to God of Him, and 
of Him only. God never tires of the fragrance of that 
Name which is above every name, the Name of Jesus. The 
smallest activity, the hidden service, the public ceremony, 
the individual priest, shall all present one fragrance to God. 
And so must it be with every member of the Church of 
God. The Holy Spirit must anoint us with the Spirit of 
Christ. In the tiniest actions, in the home life, in the busi- 
ness life, in the social life, in the church life, it must be 
“Jesus only,” the sweet savour, the perfume of heaven. All 
from Him, all for Him, all to Him. Shall we receive this 
anointing, and henceforth say, “To me to live is Christ ?” 
“Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” 


BOL 


THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 


CHAPTER VII 


THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 


GV SiS Y ey shall ‘recetve power aiter that 
the Holy Ghost is come upon you.’ 

Luke xxiv. 49. “Tarry until ye be clothed 

with power from on high. 

Eph. i. 19. “That ye may know ... the ex- 
ceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe, 
according to that working of the strength of His might, 
which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the 
ead and setyliimicii witan above is...) a 

Eph. iii. 20. “According to the power that worketh in us.” 

The enduement of power is one phase of the work of the 
Holy Spirit that never fails to secure attention and interest. 
Weakness abounds, ineffectiveness marks much of so-called 
Christian work. “More power” is the universal cry, and it » 
is the purpose and provision of God that His children 
should be adequately and permanently empowered. The 
promises of the Lord, as quoted above, are well known, and 
also how on the day of Pentecost the mighty gift was 
brought in fulfillment, so that men who were weak and timid 
before became strong and bold for Christ. The prayer of the 
apostle in Eph. i. is in line with the blessing of power, as he 
prays that the Church of God may know what is the ex- 
ceeding greatness of that power. 

The sample of it is given in the resurrection of the Lord 
from the dead. There never was such an exhibition of utter 


a ae 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


weakness as was presented by the dead Christ in the grave, 
From the height of supreme power He came, where He had 
wielded all the authority of God, and had upheld all things 
by His word, down to the level of human weakness and 
need, taking upon Himself the form of a servant, made in 
the likeness of man, and becoming obedient to death, even 
the death of the cross. 

Can any power lift Him now? If so, it must be adequate 
for any other need that can ever exist in this world. So 
the surpassing greatness of God’s power raised Christ from 
the dead and set Him on the right hand of the Most High. 
This power is spoken of as “toward us who believe.’ The 
same Spirit of Power has descended in all its fulness to up- 
lift and bless; but on what terms, and under what circum- 
stances ? To be endued with the power of Christ necessitates 
identification with the death and burial of Christ. It was 
from the grave He was raised: it is from His grave we, too, 
must be raised. In Col. ii. 12, 20, occur the expressions, 
“Having been buried with Him in baptism,” and “If ye died 
with Christ from the rudiments of the world.” God sees the 
believer identified with His Son in death, burial and resur- 
rection; and when faith perceives the same, accepts the posi- 
tion, recognises the death to all self-effort, natural powers, 
and whatever of defect may be inherited from the first 
Adam, then the Holy Spirit that raised up Christ, can also 
raise up such an one, and he henceforth walks in “newness 
of life,” and has the power of the endless life. Humiliation 
must precede exaltation. It is self-strength that hinders 
Divine strength—too much strength, not too little, is the 
cause of all weakness in the Christian life. Jacob’s strength 
of natural will measured all night at Peniel against the 
will of God as manifested in the heavenly messenger, and 


—04— 


THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 


not till that strength was brought to naught by the dislo- 
cated thigh could he be called Israel, and have strength 
from above. “When I am weak, then am I strong.” - 

The Power in Eph. i. 20 mentioned as “toward us,” is 
found to be “in us” in chapter iii. 20. Faith in Christ, ever 
rooting in His love and promises, will discover how “He is 
able to do exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think, 
according to the power that worketh in us.” | 

No limit is known to that power, no limit need be put by 
us to the possibilities of that power. It is still “the exceed- 
ing abundantly above all we ask or think” that God would 
have us to expect and receive. 


Enmantled with Power 


This expression occurs more than once in the Word of 
God. Judges vi. 34, “The Spirit of the Lord clothed Him- 
self with Gideon, and he blew a trumpet,” is one remarkable. 
phrase. Here it is the idea of the Spirit making a mantle 
of Gideon, that through him He may accomplish the pur- 
poses of God; as a man wears his mantle wherever he goes, 
so will the Spirit carry Gideon along, making him invincible 
and victorious. Who would not covet such a magnificent 
relationship with the Holy Spirit! 

1 Chron. xii. 18, “Then the Spirit clothed Amasai; and he 
said, “Thine we are, David, and thine we are, thou son of 
Jesse.” Here is the other idea of a man clothed with the 
Spirit, as with a mantle, and thus empowered. 

2 Chron. xxiv. “The Spirit of God clothed Zacharias, 
the son of Jehoiada the priest . . . they stoned him with 
stones at the commandment of the king:” a second illustra- 
tion of the enmantling with power, but, with what results? 
In the case of Amasai——to proclaim David as king, to 


iggs 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


prove loyalty and surrender for a life of obedience of God’s 
anointed. In the other—to defend the truth of God, and 
bear witness against sin. These two men are the Peter and 
Stephen of the Old Testament: the one proclaiming Christ 
as King, the other reproving sin, and being stoned for it. 
Enduement with power, then, is not merely for success in 
work and testimony, but for ability to be, and do, what 
God appoints, whether for life or death. Many a heart 
honestly craves this enduement simply for success in some 
work for Christ, and wonders why it is withheld. The mo- 
tive for its being sought is searched out by God, and if 
found not to be for the glory of God, the blessing sought 
is righteously withheld. 

The full illustration of the “enmantling with power from 
on high” is found in the narrative of 2 Kings ii., the story 
of Elijah and Elisha. “It came to pass when Jehovah would 
take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah 
went with Elisha from Gilgal.” Elijah was the master, 
the man of God, the prophet of fire, the vindicator of God 
before apostate Israel, the man of indomitable courage, 
fearless heart, and yet of tender compassion for the suffer- 
ing and sorrowing. Elisha is described thus in 2 Kings 
iii. 11: “Here is Elisha who poured water on the hands of 
Elijah,” that is to say, here is the man who has occupied 
the place of lowest service to the great Master. He had 
not always occupied this place; at one time he was a pros- 
perous farmer, possessing land and stock. The crisis 
point in his life had been the call to leave all and follow 
Elijah. Very complete at that time was the severance from 
the past life. In humiliation, lowly service, identification 
with the hardships, or otherwise, with his master, he had 
faithfully followed, and now no longer as a servant, but 


—66— 


ne ck APH en LEAN A AUS aC oe tle Le BOR AL SO 
THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 

——————>—o——y—T—T—T—T—T—£*——[—==€=[—={{z__=_z_=_=_=—CZ=—_E=_=_=EE_—/_ —_ 
treated as a friend and companion, he accompanies the 
“Prophet of Fire.” Note the parallel in John xv. 15: “No 
longer do I call you servants, . . . but I have called you 
friends.” These men had companied with the Lord, who 
is about to leave them, and He takes them into His con- 
fidence, for He wants them to understand and receive the 
enduement of power. 

In the Old Testament narrative note next the pathway 
that leads to the place of blessing: from Gilgal, through 
Bethel, Jericho and the Jordan, and up the other side. 
These places have remarkable associations with events in 
the previous history of Israel where God had been mani- 
fested. They suggest a series of Spiritual truths that need 
to be known and understood, without which the enduement 
of power cannot be a real or permanent experience. GILGAL, 
referred to in Joshua v., was the first camping ground of 
Israel after crossing the Jordan. Here the reproach was 
tolled away after the rite of circumcision had been re- 
enacted. Israel was a nation redeemed from slavery, whose 
past history had been full of failure through unbelief. The 
bones of 400,000 men lay bleaching in the wilderness ; they 
were about to enter upon an entirely new experience of 
God and of themselves, an experience to be based simply on 
obedient faith, so that their well-drilled and equipped foe 
might be unable to stand before them. 

To give them courage and expectancy God rolled away 
the reproach of all their past, so that they were never to 
reason out the chances of the future by the experiences of 
the past. This must be the starting point for the endue- 
ment of power. “The past is under the Blood.” Nothing 
is to be argued from it as to future probabilities. Here 
Elijah and Elisha stepped out as friend with friend. The 
ee 


Oy es 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


spiritual meaning of the rite of circumcision seems to be 
“having no confidence in the flesh or self,” trusting only 
in a living God. Let this be the “Henceforth” for the 
defeated, unexpectant child of God. 

The first halting place was Bethel. Elijah tested Elisha 
with the “Tarry here, I pray thee,” and was met with, 
“T will not leave thee.” Full purpose of heart to walk in 
communion all the way is essential as a pre-requisite for 
the enduement of power. Bethel’s name was an associa- 
tion with an incident in the story of Jacob, the man of 
natural weakness and meanness, in which he learned “the 
Presence of God” (Gen. xxxviii). Unexpectedly he found 
himself in the place of the Presence, and received the 
gracious promise of God. An old 17th century saint, 
Tauler by name, was accustomed to urge on his brethren 
the words, “Practice the Presence of God.” Let every halt- 
ing place for rest and refreshment be Bethel, the “place 
of the Presence,” and there will be preparation for any 
fuller manifestation God may be about to give. 

The second halting place was Jericho. Here again the 
test was applied of communion to be continued, and the 
same answer given. The spot was famous for being the 
place of the power of God’s Presence giving victory over 
Israel’s great foe that barred the way of access to the land 
of promise. Josh. vi. To overcome Jericho, only one thing 
was needed, namely, obedience to God’s command, trust- 
ing Him for deliverance. No flesh must glory in His Pres- 
ence; no foe shall glory in His presence. The scheme for 
the overthrow of Jericho made no appeal to common sense, 
human skill or effort; it was designed solely to manifest 
that in God’s presence Israel had all power. In going for- 
ward, then, the believer is to learn how he has the presence 


eee 


THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 


of a living God at all times, who is the Almighty God for 
him in all circumstances. “I am El-Shaddai, walk before 
Me and be thou perfect.” 
The third halting place was Jordan, and the halt was but 
for a moment. No further test was applied. “They two 
went on,” “They two stood by Jordan,’ “They two went 
over.” It is the picture of the holy, happy fellowship. The 
_ pathway has been a descent all the way, and to Jordan, 
the place signifying judgment and death, they together 
have come. For what was Jordan memorable in past his- 
tory? For the manifestation of the presence of the power 
of God in holding back the swollen riven till all Israel had 
crossed over (Josh. iii.). The Ark of the Covenant had 
taken its place high up the stream, and there it was upheld 
by the priests, the silent symbol of mercy and strength, but 
mercy based on atonement, and therefore, upholding the 
glory and holiness of God. Across the river, by the road 
made through the smiting of it with Elijah’s mantle, the 
two men crossed. Elisha is now as one who is dead, buried, 
and risen again, in union with his master, who is about 
to ascend, having recognised the meaning of the facts that 
lay behind him, and therefore ready for the great offer. 
“Ask what I shall do for thee before I be taken from thee” 
(2 Kings ii. 9). It is the opportunity of his life, and he 
seizes it. To walk in his master’s footsteps, to vindicate 
the honour of Jehovah before an unawakened apostate 
nation, to remain true to God when alone and without the 
strong presence of his master, will be his difficulty, and so 
his request is, “Let, I pray thee, a double portion of thy 
spirit be upon me.” He meant, “let the birthright portion 
be mine.” (See Deut. xxi. 17). “I have been thy servant, 
treat me as thy first-born son; give me that legacy, and | 


=—69—— 


SE a 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
NL 
shall be content.” “Thou hast asked a hard thing, never- 
theless”’—and here Elijah attached conditions on the ful- 
fillment of which the prayer should be answered, and the 
gift bestowed—“if thou see me when I am taken from thee, 
it shall be so, but if not, it shall not be so.” In other words, 
“Maintain unbroken the communion, let no circumstance 
of the moment distract, and the enduement of power shall 
be thine.” How shall he maintain that communion? “As 
they still went on and talked.’ Keep up the conversation, 
and you will keep up the communion. Neither the rough- 
ness of the road nor the beauty of the prospect must come in. 


Nothing between, Lord, nothing between— 
Thus may I walk with Thee. 


As they communed, the angelic escort, suddenly becoming 
visible, divided them, and the whirlwind caught up the 
man of God. He was ascending, and as the master went 
up, Elisha cried after him, “My father, my father,” claim- 
ing the promise of the first-born’s portion, on the fulfilled 
conditions. It was the short, simple, powerful prayer of 
faith. 

Then the mantle fell, symbol of the spirit of power, and 
Elisha, rending his own garments, in token that they were 
done with, and done for, will henceforth wear the mantle 
of the man of Carmel. 

The meaning is simple. Ere the Lord left the little com- 
pany who were to take up His work and be His followers, 
He said (John xiv. 13), “Whatsoever ye shall ask the 
Father in My name, that will I do.” The opportunity of 
asking, which Elisha had but once in his life, we have con- 
tinually, viz., His glorious words, “‘Whatsoever ye shall 
ask.” 


—70— 


THE ENDUEMENT OF POWER 


Thus we are to understand the meaning of our Master’s 
Ascension day. He has gone up on high to obtain and be- 
stow gifts on man. Nota crucified Jesus do we so much 
think of, as of the risen, exalted, and empowered Son of 
God, Lord and Christ. To many He is, alas! only the One 
who has died for them. Attention is fixed on the cross that 
should now be fixed on the throne. From the throne, 
comes the mantle of power by way of the cross. | 

Notice again how the company of disciples, as He bade 
them, waited in Jerusalem for the falling of the mantle, and 
on the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended. That 
which had been the very source and secret of His power 
and successful ministry, whereby He pleased God in all 
things, whereby He went to the cross of Calvary, and 
whereby he rose and ascended, has returned to earth, and 
iS RECEIVED by every one of the hundred and twenty waiting, 
believing men and women. They are enmantled with power 
from on high. The old habits and experiences associated 
with failure and mistake are rent asunder, never again to 
be worn. The timidity, weakness, vacillation, gloom, doubt, 
fear, selfishness, quarrelsomeness that had characterized 
them, vanish, and in this new power they return to work, 
and begin to witness for Him. 

For the believer to-day there is the same provision on 
precisely the same terms. Shall the old habits go, with all 
‘their unholy associations, shall the purely human give way 
to the divine, and shall your share of the mantle be claimed 
and worn? ‘There is nothing to wait for, provided you 
understand the significance of Gilgal, Bethel, Jericho, and 
Jordan. “Old things have passed away.” “Lo, I am with 
you alway’—‘“More than conquerors through Him that 
loved us’—“Buried with Christ, risen with Christ’— 


ae] Le 


cee 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
_=————ESESESa=E=EeEeeeeeeeeeEEETESES 
“Henceforth to walk in newness of life.’ Faith sees, faith 
hears, faith stoops and appropriates, and we are strength- 
ened with all might by His Spirit in the inner man. Take 
your place as a member of the Church of the first-born, wait 
for no sensation of feeling; believe that the enmantling is 
for you because you are a child of God, in a surrendered 
obedient spirit, and nothing shall hinder your blessing. 
Your joy shall be full—the joy of the Lord your strength. 


—]2— 


THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 
HIS most important topic must be looked at 
from two standpoints: Ist, the DocTRINAL; 
2nd, the ExPERIMENTAL. The latter cannot be- 
come the full blessing so keenly desired unless 
the doctrinal ground for it is very clear and 
correct. What follows in this chapter may not be altogether 
accepted by many readers, but prayerful consideration is 
asked for it, in order that fresh perception may be granted 
and a deeper, truer experiment result therefrom. 

Note at the outset that the very common phrase, “the 
Baptism of the Spirit,” will not be found in the Bible. It 
has so often happened that the alteration of a little word 
tends to alter the sense as to eventually mislead the mind. 
In order to know the value and meaning of an important 
phrase, it should be traced through the Bible and its con- 
text carefully marked so that it may be assigned its mean- 
ing and proportionate value. The phrase, “Baptized in the 
Spirit,” should be thus treated, and it will be found to occur 
six times, namely, in Matt. iii. 11, Mark i. 8, Luke iii. 16, 
John i. 33. These four Scriptures are the narration by the 
four writers of the Gospels of the same fact, namely, John 
the Baptist’s declaration, “He shall baptize you in (or with) 
the Holy Spirit,” the prediction not of a phase of blessing, 
but of a great foundation fact, which would be fully am- 
plified and expounded as time passed along. The two re- 


pK, dat 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


maining Scriptures are Acts i. 5 and xi. 16. In the former 
the Risen Lord is referring to John Baptist’s testimony and 
word, and naturally makes use of John Baptist’s phrase, 
emphasising and repeating it. Similarly in the latter text, 
the Apostle Peter is quoting the words of the Lord to the 
disciples as given in i. 5, and proves that they had been 
illustrated both with the Jewish disciples on the day of 
Pentecost, and with the Gentile disciples of the household 
of Cornelius in Czesarea. 

The nearest phrase to this one of John the Baptist’s, used 
by the Apostle Paul, is that of 1 Cor. xii. 13, “For by one 
Spirit are we all baptized into one body . . . . and have all 
been made to drink of that one Spirit.” Two facts are 
here noted: 1st, BAPTIZED INTO ONE BODY IN THE SPIRIT; 
2nd, THe Spirit In us. The two facts are simultaneous, 
and are spoken of in the past tense, as something behind, 
rather than to be attained as a phase of blessing. (The 
state of the Church at Corinth was of the very lowest, 
it will be remembered, and instead of exhorting to a laying 
hold of blessing as never before received, the Apostle rather 
points back to what had taken place, and makes the ground 
of his appeal to rest on this. In other words he is saying: 
Remember what you are, recall the original solemn facts, 
and come at once up to them experimentally. 

The next step will be to trace the use of the word “bap- 
tized” so as to understand its meaning in this text. 1 Cor. 
x. I, 2: “I would not, brethren, have you ignorant, how 
that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed 
through the sea, and were baptized unto (or into) Moses 
in the cloud and in the sea.” “Baptized unto Moses”’— 
what is this? Behind it lies redemption by blood, deliver- 
ance from the bondage of Egypt, and the result—that 


ugar e 


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THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 
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Moses led them through the sea, type of death to the past 
life, and brought them under the blessed guidance and 
protection of the cloud, symbol of the Holy Spirit. It was 
not, then, a phase of blessing for some, but what all partook 
of. Yet how few had any clear perception of the results © 
experimentally of this baptism, as provided by their mur- 
muring rebellious disobedience later on. We have here an. 
illustration of being baptized into a wondrous position of 
blessing, without following on to possess the good promises. 
It would have been foolish to have put the question, “Have 
you received the baptism unto Moses?’ The wise one 
would be, “Do you know the results in your future life of 
the baptism into Moses?” 

Gal. ii. 27: “As many as were baptized into Christ, did 
put on Christ.” A statement of a definite fact in the past, 
probably connected in the apostle’s mind, not so much with 
the administration of the ordinance of water baptism, but 
with the truth already stated in 1 Cor. xii. 13. To this add 
Rom. vi. 3: “All who were baptized into Christ Jesus 
were baptized into His death. We were buried, there- 
fore, with Him through baptism into death.” Here, again, 
let us look at the spiritual fact behind the ordinance of 
water baptism, should any prefer to take the whole passage 
in connection with such ordinance. It is again a past tense 
statement, the great New Testament revelation of the 
results of the gift of the Spirit—united to the body of 
Christ, partaking of His life and nature, an indissoluble and 
eternal union—putting on Christ as the manifestation for 
the future of the inner life through conduct and character, 
and so identified with him in death and resurrection as 
henceforth to be able to walk in newness of life. The 
expansion of this position of the believer in Christ is found 


a ee 
—75— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


in Eph. i., ii., iii, where the apostle sums up the marvelous 
inventory of the blessings, saying they are ours, to be ap- 
propriated, held, lived in, enjoyed, and accepted by faith. 
His prayer is not that the Ephesian Christians may have, 
but that they may know what they have. No exhortation 
is found in those three chapters, all is statement of fact, 
the definition of the position occupied in Christ. When 
this is known, nothing is simpler than to appropriate by 
faith continuously, moment by moment, the wealth of bless- 
ing; not praying to realize, always a dangerous word, 
but thanking for the knowledge that will enable the activity 
of faith to possess and live out the fulness of blessing. 
Supposing any poor person has had $100,000 deposited 
to his credit in a bank, but does not know it; the fact is 
there, absolutely true. What is needed? That the pos- 
sessor should know the fact, not pray for the money. 
Knowledge obtained by faith will lead to immediate action 
in using the fortune, and alter instantaneously the experi-. 
ence of such an one. He will begin to draw his cheques, 
surround himself with the comforts, luxuries, supplies, that 
his poverty debarred him from enjoying. Desire gives place 
to acceptance and thanksgiving, and things move on in due 
course as the legitimate outcome. Therefore, KNOW your 
position in Christ, the baptism in the Spirit, into the one 
body, into all the blessing that God has stored up in Christ, 
and give thanks heartily by faith. 

The accompanying diagram may make more clear the 
presentation of this subject. John the Baptist’s two great 
proclamations were “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh 
away the sin of the world,” and “He shall baptize you in the 
Holy Spirit and Fire.’ Whom would He baptize? Those 
whose sins He bore, and who Honor Him as the Lamb of 


—6o 


THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 


God. All of them, or some of them? Surely all of them, 
for the one statement is as universal as the other. The Sin 
Bearer is the Baptizer. Those whose sins are taken away 
are to receive the Baptism in the Spirit. He takes away sin 
that He may give the Spirit in its place. Where Sin reigned, 
now the Spirit is to rule, encompass, surround, immerse. | 
Is it a matter of fact, or experiment? First, a matter of 


fact in the case of every Believer; and then it should be, 
and may be, an experimental fact. But in very many cases, 
through ignorance and unbelief, this is not so. The awaken- 
ing of the mind to the knowledge of the Fact is the experi- 
mental side of the blessing. Of what, then, does the “Bap- 
tism in the Spirit” consist? It is a phrase to cover the 


shall Pace 


assem sande pms tg ee 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
———ooooo————————o=={{====:={=__=_=_=_—_—EEEE_—EE 
whole work of the Spirit from the beginning to the end 
of the Believer’s life. It is not some special distinct ex- 
perience; but every distinct experience that may arise will 
be a fuller knowledge of all that is wrapped up and in- 
cluded in the Baptism i in the Spirit. 

Place yourself in the centre of the circle and face the 
Segment labelled “Born of the Spirit.” There remain, and 
tho’ all the other Segments are yours you may never know 
them experimentally, because you have not faced them and 
appropriated by faith their meaning. Again, turn to the 
left and face the Segments “Taught” and “Led,” and there 
may never be the knowledge of the Anointing, or the Infill- 
ing, or the Enduement of Power. You have received your 
Baptism in the Spirit, but you have not known the Re- 
sources, and the Bestowments, and the gifts that are await- 
ing you. Face any fresh phase of the Spirit’s work, and 
you enter upon a fresh blessing and a fresh sense of His 
Power and Promise; but no one phase is THE Baprism. 

Then, again, what does the word Baptize mean? It 
means to immerse, plunge into, cover completely with. It 
is used of plunging a cup into water, when the water com- 
pletely covers it. It is not a word to define an internal 
experience, but rather an operation on the believer. God 
sees us immersed in the Holy Spirit, and then by the Spirit 
placed in the Body of Christ. First baptized into His death, 
and then baptized into Christ risen and exalted. 

The internal experience is Drinking of that Spirit. 
Within He accomplishes the cleansing, sanctifying, infilling. 

The experimental side of the baptism in the Spirit is 
found in Rom. vi., opening with the great question, “Shall 
we continue in sin that grace may abound?” There is no 
question more common than this in the experiences of the 


ieee TT] 
—78— 


THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 


people of,God. On all sides we hear it put thus: “I know 
Iam a Christian, I believe the Lord Jesus Christ has died 
for my sins, has given me full pardon and eternal life—I 
know that I have a changed heart, for in many ways I am 
different, but I have not full deliverance from sin; I fail 
along a certain line of habit of sin. I know it is wrong, but 
I cannot help it. I have prayed about it, wept over it, 
resolved again and again that I would watch and strive and 
gain the mastery. It is of no use. The plan of salvation 
only works up to a certain point experimentally. I do con- 
tinue in the commission of certain forms of sins that my 
conscience rebels against, and but for the abounding grace 
of God, I should be in despair. What is the application of 
the truth that I need to deliver me from sin? I suppose I 
need the Baptism of the Spirit. I have prayed for that, and 
waited and hoped, and studied the question, but it is no 
good!’ This typical case of the state of a very large num- 
ber of Christians must be helped and honestly met. First, 
it is not a Baptism of the Spirit that is needed, but a grasp 
of the truths that lie embedded in the statement, “Bap- 
tized im the Spirit. Baptized into Christ Jesus. Baptized 
into His death.” Two facts were accomplished at the death 
of the Lord: death FOR sin, and death TO sin. Death 
for sin has been expounded by the apostle in the preced- 
ing chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, and the believer 
has been called upon to see by faith his identification with 
Christ on the cross in the sight of God; so that in death 
passing upon Christ for sin, it has passed upon him in 
Christ. No further sentence of death, then, is possible for 
Christ or for the Christian. All questions of guilt and con- 
sequent condemnation have been settled once for all, as 


SS SE SSL SSS SSS SE ESS SS SSS SS SCT OTRO 


SL SS SSS sss sesame 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
——o=&=—=D——_— 
stated in Rom. viii. 1. Death for sin has been substitu- 
tionary. 


He bore on the tree the sentence for me, 
And now both the Surety and sinner are free. 


But this alone does not give power over sin. The second 
fact is death TO sin. On the cross sin surrounded the 
Lord in every possible way. Sin was laid upon Him; He 
was made sin. Sin sought to tempt Him in the threefold 
plea: “If thou be the Christ come down from the cross.” 
Sin vented its worst against Him in the treatment He re- 
ceived from Jew and Gentile. He was exposed to its power, 
its malice, its guilt, its vehemence from every quarter. But 
the moment He died, He was dead to it all. Nothing more 
of sin could touch Him in any way. He was out of its 
reach, beyond its power—no more sight or sound of it could 
reach Him. Death delivered and severed Him from it for 
ever. Rom. vi. 10: “In that He died, He died unto sin once: 
but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.” 

Just as a believer has identified himself by faith with 
Christ on the cross in dying for sin, let him proceed to do 
so in the matter of dying to sin, according to the command 
of Rom. vi. 11, “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be 
dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus.” 
Let faith quietly look at this new position in which God 
sees the believer, namely, to be as far from the power and 
touch of sin as Christ is, death being the delivering force 
and fact. So much more lies here than many have ever 
seen. First, reckon yourselves to be what God sees you to 
be, namely, “dead to sin in C hrist;” this is a negative fact. 
Next, reckon yourselves to be what God sees you to be, 
namely, “alive unto God in Christ,’ even as the Spirit has 


SS SSS SSS Sse Ss SUS SSP SNSSSHSSE 
ANT Wa 


a 
THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 
—Nas=E=aEamya—E>E~—=E——>>=—=SS=S==ElElETl_l—— 
baptized you into that life of Christ, and made you partaker 
of it. Thirdly, act immediately before God, according to 
the command in v. 17, “Present yourselves unto God as 
those that are alive from the dead, and your members as 
instruments of righteousness unto God.” The work of the 
Spirit of God is to guide you into these definite positions of 
faith, and in so doing, to give an experimental result in 
victory over all the sins that have mastered the life. Verse 
12 adds, “Let not sin THEREFORE reign in your mortal body.” 
The Baptism in the Spirit is provided to accomplish these 
very results from the beginning of the spiritual life. Be- 
cause so few know this or have heard it, an experimental 
stepping into the position of victory and deliverance, ac- 
companied by its flood of joy and peace, has been called, 
“receiving the Baptism of the Spirit.” It really should be 
termed, “Accepting the results of the Baptism in the Spirit. 


WHAT IS RECKONING? 


This is undoubtedly the crisis word, which admits into the 
treasure-house of the fulness of blessing. The best illus- 
tration of it may be found in the story of Jairus’s daughter 
being raised from the dead. The child was dying; as a last 
hope her father hastened to the Lord, engaged in open-air 
work at the time, and falling down before Him, said, “My 
little daughter lieth at the point of death, I pray Thee that 
Thou wilt come and lay Thine hand upon her, and she shall 
live.” The Lord proceeded so to do, but was detained by 
the incident of the woman who came behind and touched 
Him. The result was that the delay in His arrival proved 
fatal, and the servants hastened to inform their Master that 
it was too late—the child had died. On overhearing this, 
the Lord said, “Fear not, believe only, and she shall be made 


5 = 


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THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
———————————————————————— nnn 
whole,” meaning, “You put the case into my hands, leave it 
there—the altered conditions in the child have not altered 
my purpose.” On arriving at the house, they found the 
child was truly dead, the body laid out for burial, and the 
mourning ceremonies had commenced. Followed by five 
persons, namely, the parents and the three disciples, Peter, 
James and John, who to us represent Faith, He entered the 
room occupied by the professional mourners, and said, 
“Weep not, she is not dead, but sleepeth.” But they laughed 
Him to scorn, knowing she was dead. Now, who was right ? 
Who is to be believed? The women who can speak from 
authoritative experience, having handled and laid out the 
body, or the Lord, who addresses His words to faith? Both 
are really right from their two standpoints. From the 
point of experience the women are right; from the point 
of faith Christ is right. That is to say, the Lord appeals 
not to sense or feeling, or experience, but to Himself, and 
as good as says: Reckon that child to be alive in the face 
of present conditions, and she shall be alive. He makes 
an assertion of faith in advance of its being a fact, in order 
that faith may act as though it were a fact—then it will 
become an experimental fact. There was, however, a hin- 
drance in the way in this case, the scornful unbelief that 
asserted its experience against His word. He had to put 
the scorners out, and when the room was cleared he did 
what Jairus had originally asked Him to do; He took her 
by the hand, saying, “Dearie—get up,” and she arose. 

In Rom. iv. 17, the whole position is summed up in one 
sentence regarding Abraham. “Him whom he believed, even 
God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth the things that 
are not as though they were.’ This is reckoning, and then 
the Spirit of God steps in to make the reckoning of faith an 
ene 


— 


i 
THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT 
———e_—ea_a—ae_—sSseEe_=—EE==E=E=E=EEE>——{*_**“*[>_>{_{*{*_*_*_**_{*_<=_EEE——E 
experimental fact, and so the true results of the baptism 
in the Spirit are received and known, moment by moment, 
as faith continues in exercise, believing that I am dead to 
sin, alive unto God, and so presenting myself unto God as 

one who is alive from the dead. | 

To many this sudden perception and knowledge is accom- 
panied by an experience so rich, so full, so wonderful, that 
they have said they have received the Baptism of the Spinity: | 
Thank God for the knowledge received, for the prayers 
answered, for the scales fallen from the eyes—but looking 
back over the past, was not that very position of blessing 
the one the Spirit had brought them into, only they knew 
it not? Now press on to further heights of knowledge 
that will mean possession by faith of much more of the 
promises of God. 


—83— 


ee EERE EEE 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


SSS Sls 


CHAPTER IX 


RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 


OHN xx. 22: “He breathed on them and said, 
Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” 
Acts i.8: “Ye shall receive power after that 
the Holy Spirit is come upon you.” 

Receiving is accepting and giving thanks. 

It is the open heart turned toward the source of supply, 
taking by faith what God offers as a gift to be used for 
God, and by God. The hindrances, therefore, are unbelief, 
and the planning as to how we shall receive, and for what 
purposes, often for what selfish purposes. Who can re- 
ceive? Those who have hearts cleansed from the sin of 
selfishness and unbelief. ‘There must be a clean receptacle 
for the pure treasure. “We have this treasure in earthen 
vessels.” The treasure will not alter the substance of the 
vessel, just as no amount of gold stored in an earthenware 
jar will ever affect the earthenware. What is needed 
is the heart and spirit to be cleansed from sin. This 
is the Spirit’s work, applying the result of the sacrifice 
of Christ, and so making the way for His reception 
and indwelling, unhindered and ungrieved. There is to be 
no interval between the acceptance of Christ as Saviour and 
of the Holy Spirit as the Indweller and Sanctifier. The one 
follows immediately after the other, or is simultaneous with 
the other, but unless the truth of this be taught, necessarily 
many will be unaware of how they may receive, welcome, 


a 


—34— 


RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 


and rejoice in the Presence of the great Blessing. 

At first sight the narratives in the Acts of the Apostles 
may appear to contradict this statement ; but difference must 
be made between initial preparatory steps, and the normal 
condition of things resulting therefrom. It will be noted 
there is a difference of method in the treatment of the Jew 
from. that ‘of the Gentile. 

Let us look at the narrative relating to Jews receiving the 
Holy Spirit (Acts ii. 38). In answer to the great cry of the 
convicted hearers on the day of Pentecost, who were all 
Jews, the Apostle Peter said, “Repent and be baptized every 
one of you...and ye shall receive the Holy Spirit.” 

Here the order was Ist, “Repent,” 7. e., change the attitude 
of mind toward Jesus of Nazareth, whom the nation has 
condemned as an impostor and blesphemer ,and look up to 
Him as Lord and Christ, risen from the dead, head of the 
nation and exalted by God. 

2nd, “Be baptized”—this was necessary as a public 
acknowledgment of the position taken, and a confession of 
the reversal of the national vote against Him. To under- 
stand this, it is necessary to somewhat drop our modern 
ideas of Christian baptism as a church ordinance, and put 
ourselves back into the habits of thought of that time. Bap- 
tism was then the confession of accepting the one who bap- 
tized, or in whose name the rite was administered, as the 
acknowledged Teacher of the disciple. It was committal to 
a certain Person setting forth certain spiritual truths and 
was the badge of the new discipleship. 

Thus had John the Baptist baptized, and later on Christ’s 
disciples baptized in His Name, probably rebaptizing many 
of John Baptist’s disciples as they moved on from the one 
teacher to the other. In this way Peter challenged these 


aN Yue 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


3,000 enquirers, if truly in earnest, to prove it by the proc- 
ess that was customary, of being baptized in the name of 
the Lord Jesus. It would bea step taken in direct opposition 
to the nation’s attitude. 

3rd, “Ye shall receive the Holy Spirit.” The confession 
by a public act of faith in Jesus of Nazareth being raised 
from the dead, exalted to the right hand of God as Prince 
and Saviour, and giving remission of sins, would receive 
the Divine ratification of the gift of the Holy Spirit. The 
nation had shouted, “His blood be on us and our children,” 
and this demand would have to be endorsed by God unless 
repentance and confession followed. | 

There was therefore need for these Jewish believers to be 
dissociated from their nation, in the matter of the national 
guilt, by this act of baptism, and then the gift of God could 
be bestawed, purchased by Calvary’s atonement, making 
them members of the family of God. 

In Acts ix. 17, 18, the treatment of Saul of Tarsus by An- 
anias is on similar lines. “Brother Saul, the Lord... hath 
sent me that thou mightest receive thy sight and be filled 
with the Holy Ghost; and immediately there fell from his 
eyes, as it had been scales, and he received sight forthwith, 
and arose, and was baptized.” In his own report of the event, 
in Acts xxii. 16, he says that the words of Ananias were 
“Arise and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on 
the name of the Lord.” 

In neither case is any further reference made to his receiv- 
ing the Holy Spirit, and not till chapter xiii. 9, is the fact 
mentioned in these words—“Then Saul (who is also called 
Paul), filled with the Holy Ghost.” The impression left on 
the mind is that the same order prevailed with this persecut- 
ing Jew as had been observed on the day of Pentecost. 


ee 


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rss PSS A A ESP EIS SSE TE IE SSIES LI EG ETI DELTA LEE CLIT ECE LID) 
RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 


(eer A SE SS ES ESE SE IE TE TE DTT ET 


The Samaritans come next under notice, as recorded in 
Acts viii. Philip has been the evangelist, winning many to 
Christ, and baptizing them, both men and women. But the 
definite imparting of the Holy Spirit as the indweller and 
occupier of these believers was conditional on the arrival of 
two apostles, who apparently, carefully investigated the 
work done, satisfying themselves that it was the work of 
God, that these believers are genuine and true, but detecting 
the falseness in Simon Magus. 

Then they prayed that they might be partakers of the 
same wonderful fulness of blessing with all Jerusalem con- 
verts, and laying hands on them, they, too, received the Holy 
Spirit. The great truths concerning the Holy Spirit had not 
formed part of Philip’s teaching. He had confined him- 
self to the proclamation of the work of Christ on Calvary 
for the remission of sins. The fuller preaching produced ac- 
companying fuller results. The Samaritans were connec- 
tions by race of the Jews, were guilty of having rejected 
Him, and therefore came under the same treatment in re- 
lation to the Gift of the Spirit. 

The last illustration will be found in Acts xix. 1-7. The 
Apostle Paul, on his first visit to Ephesus, found twelve 
brethren, i. e., Jewish believers, who had been under the 
limited teaching emanating from John Baptist. Evidently 
they had had no knowledge of the facts happening since 
John Baptist’s ministry, in connection with the death, 
Burial, Resurrection, and Ascension of the Lord Jesus, and 
the consequent Descent of the Holy Spirit on the day of 
Pentecost. 

Two theories account for their position. One is that they 
had happened to have visited Judea at the time of John Bap- 
tist’s career, heard the preaching, were moved by it, and had 


OMT 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


been baptized of him in Jordan, shortly afterwards returning 
home to Ephesus. The other is that Apollos, mentioned 
in Xviil. 24, 25, had been the means of their blessing, hav- 
ing preached and practiced all he knew, namely, the bap- 
tism of John, as described in xix. 4. This seems the more 
likely fact of the two. Paul, then, had to instruct them in the 
full Gospel, and, being Jews, caused them to be baptized in 
the Name of the Lord Jesus, as a confession of Him as 
their new Teacher and Lord, and then they, too, could © 
receive the Holy Spirit. 

It will be seen from these facts that the initial steps for 
the bestowal of the Holy Spirit upon Jews were peculiar, 
local, and introductory; by no means indicative of the way 
in which the Church in general should receive the Holy 
Spirit. Is it, therefore, fair and helpful to use the question 
of Acts xix. 2, to a company of Christian people in totally 
different circumstances and position to that of the twelve 
who were thus addressed? 

If the question be used, then surely the same treatment 
ought to be followed, and the reception of the Holy Spirit 
ought to be made dependent on re-baptism. But this no one 
thinks of suggesting, much less practising. The use of 
the question may lead to much confusion of thought in con- 
sequence. 

In Acts v. 32, the whole situation is summed up in the 
words, “The Holy Spirit, whom God hath given to them 
that obey Him.” The act and attitude of obedience secured 
the gift in all cases above cited. It was the distinct confes- 
sion of the Lorpsuip of Christ that was needed to secure 
the mighty gift, for the Spirit has come to glorify Christ. 

The treatment of Gentiles will be the next section of our 
study, and we have but one case which may be taken as 


ea al 


RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 


typical of the whole work of evangelizing the Gentiles. 
Acts. x. contains the story of the visit of Peter to Cor- 
nelius’ household at Cesarea, made at first very unwillingly, 
but under direct guidance of the Holy Spirit. The com- 
pany addressed were all heathen-born and had come under 
the influence of the Theism of the Jewish religion as dis- 
tinct from the Polytheism of Rome. Renouncing the latter, 
Cornelius had been for some time a diligent searcher after 
truth. 

The preaching of the Apostle Peter was the simple ex- 
position of the spiritual results of the well-known facts 
concerning Jesus of Nazareth. As soon as he came to the 
utterance, “Through His Name, whosoever believeth on 
Him shall receive remission of sins,’ the Holy Spirit fell 
on the hearers and they immediately began to give testi- 
mony in a similar way to that on the day of Pentecost. The 
similarity of the scene convinced the apostles that the same 
event had occurred among these heathen believers as had 
happened to the Jewish believers in Jerusalem. 

Baptism in this case followed the receiving of the Spirit, 
and the act of obedience was to indicate the full truth as to 
what had occurred. Why is the order reversed? Because 
there was not retracing of any step necessary on the part of 
these Gentile believers. They had never been in a posi- 
tion of antagonism to Christ, they had rejected no definite 
offer of the kingdom of God as had the Jews. With them 
the process was simpler. It was the opening of the heart 
by faith to the truth presented, and the Holy Spirit took 
full possession immediately they believed on the Lord. This 
seems to be the normal condition for the outpouring of the 
Spirit upon Gentile hearers, especially the heathen. Possi- 
bly a truer grasp of these conditions might lead to a better 


Se eee EEE ae 


eae 8 Q)cceemn 


AU Ain NS Ses EOD NO PO ANAM Svs SS RESUS DUD AP ERO CEL gS ES 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
Nee 
presentation of the Gospel, accompanied by better results 
among the heathen of to-day. 

What about the present condition of Christian people to 
whom much of this outline may be utterly unknown? We 
have amongst us to-day a condition of things partly repre- 
sented by both aspects of affairs as given in the Acts. There 
has been a rejection of the claims of Christ as Lord, a dis- 
obedience to His revealed will and word, partly through 
the pressure of current religious opinions, partly through 
ignorance, but an ignorance that is culpable. Then again 
we are Gentiles and not Jews. There must therefore be 
a modified presentation of the truth, possibly framed under 
the question, “How have ye received the Holy Spirit since 
ye believed?” There has been a reception, but not a full 
reception, not the great and gracious infilling of the Spirit. 

By many He has been received into the smallest portion 
of the heart, and there He truly is, but restrained, uncon- 
sulted, with no liberty of action, no power of control, no 
freedom of speech. What is needed is that the whole being 
be thrown open to Him without reserve, that He be wel- 
comed as the Lord, the Occupier, the Possessor of all,’ to 
control, dominate, use, and sanctify all for the purposes of 
Christ. There are barriers of self-will—that will have to 
be swept away. There are habits of self-indulgence—that 
will have to be confessed and surrendered to Him. All 
must come under the searchlight of His holiness, and what- 
ever is found out of harmony must go. Then, and not till 
then, will the reception of the Spirit be in accordance with 
the original pattern, accompanied by similar results. At 
conversion He was undoubtedly received, but by many quite 
unconsciously ; now let such see Who has been abiding in 
them, revealing Christ the Life, and they will know the 
meaning of “life abundantly.” 


—90— 


RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 
—————————————————— 
THE GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT 

The gifts of the Spirit must be clearly distinguished from 
the Spirit Himself. His presence is the first great fact. 
As He becomes known and yielded to, He is able to bestow 
gifts on the believer that will enrich the life and character, 
and make such an one useful and effective. The power 
for soul-winning is a gift, so also is the power for inter- 
cession—the exercise of faith for others, gifts of ministry, 
teaching, discerning of spirits, etc. See the catalogue in 
tCore xi 8,128. 

He delights to give; so ask for such gifts as He prompts 
the heart to desire, and claim them from Him, to be used 
always and only under His direction, and solely for the 
glory of Christ, otherwise they may be withdrawn... “And 
yet,’ says the apostle, “I shew unto you a more excellent 
way” (1 Cor. xii. 31), something that every believer may 
possess apart from certain gifts bestowed only on some. 
He then goes on in chapter xiii. to expound what is “the 
Love of God shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Spirit,” 
and counsels all to desire this. In reading this remark- 
able chapter, for charity put the word love; then for love 
in a second reading substitute the name God, “for God iS 
love”; for God, substitute Jesus, for He was “God mani- 
fest in the flesh,” and then read through for the fourth 
time, and the chapter will give the full length portrait of 
the Lord Jesus, thus :— 

“Tesus suffereth long and is kind.” Luke ix. 54. The 
Samaritan villagers who refused Him hospitality 
were spared all vengeance. 

“Josus envieth not.’ Luke ix. 49. He refused to forbid 
the man from casting out unclean spirits, who was able 
to do so, though not one of the commissioned disciples. 


ee 


—91— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


“Jesus vaunteth not himself.” Matt. ix. 30. He requested 
the blind men whom He had healed not to publish it 
abroad. 

“Jesus is not puffed up.’ Mark i. 37. When all men 
sought Him after a time of gracious blessing, He with- 
drew to another village. 

“Jesus doth not behave Himself unseemly.” John x. 39. 
He showed no resentment when stoned in the temple 
courts while doing works of mercy. 

“Jesus seeketh not His own.’ John vi. 15. The kingdom 
was His, but He neither sought it, nor would He ac- 
cept it from the crowd who offered it. 

“Jesus is not provoked.’ Luke xxii. 61. Peter’s denial 
called forth only a look of forgiving, forceful love. 

“Jesus taketh no account of evil.” Luke xxiii. 34. He 
prayed, Father, forgive them. 

“Jesus rejoiceth not in iniquity.’ John viii. 11. He dis- 
missed those who brought the charge of sin, and for- 
gave the sinner with His “Neither do I condemn thee.” 

“Jesus rejoiceth in the truth.’ Luke x. 22. In that hour 
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit. 

“Jesus beareth all things.” Isa. liii. 4, 1 Peter ii. 24. He 
hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows—who 
His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree. 

“Believeth all things.’ Matt. xvi. 19. He believed in 
Simon Peter, notwithstanding His knowledge of his 
character. 

“Hopeth all things.’ John xiii. 3-6. Knowing the ap- 
proaching scattering, how He hoped in their future 
faithful and splendid service. | 

“Endureth all things.’ Heb. xii. 4. He endured the cross, 
despising its shame. 


om Q 2amne 


RECEIVING THE SPIRIT 


————_—————————eeeeeeeeeeeoooeooEemoss 


“Josus never faileth.”’? John xiii. 2. Having loved His 
own that were in the world, He loved them unto the 
end. ‘ 

To receive the Holy Spirit will be to have such love as. 
this filling the heart, so that these great features of the 

Lord’s character may again be seen in His people. Let — 

faith give the hearty welcome, and blessing will overflow 

to others. } 


aT cb 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


CHAPTER X 


SINS AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT 


HE Holy Spirit, being the Third Person of 
the Trinity, can be sinned against, alas! and 
Scripture contains a series of warnings in re- 
lation thereto. The first thought that arises 
in connection with this subject is no doubt concern- 
ing “the unpardonable sin,’ about which much confusion 
has arisen, and, in consequence, morbid minds have been 
sorely oppressed. The reference to this occurs in Mark iii. 
22-30. A well-known writer on the Holy Spirit, Rev. J. Elder 
Cumming, D.D., of Glasgow, in this book “Through the 
Eternal Spirit,’ has very helpfully analysed this passage 
under the following heads: Ver. 21, the Lord’s friends 
went out to lay hold of him, saying, “He is beside Himself.” 
This the writer calls blasphemy in the first degree. It was 
defining the power that controlled and filled Him as mad- 
ness, a brain trouble. In ver. 22, the Scribes said, “He 
hath Beelzebub,”’ that is, demoniacal possession, a control 
exercised by a fallen spirit. This he calls blasphemy in 
the second degree. Then in ver. 30, They said, “He hath 
an unclean spirit,’ thus attributing impurity to Him, and 
accusing him of the most awful condition a man could be 
in. This is blasphemy of the third degree, and is “The 
Unpardonable Sin.” 
It is attributing all the outcome of the blessed, holy life 
of the Son of God to the unclean powers of hell. What can 


Aa. F he 


SINS AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT 


——— nn 


be worse? For such there is no forgiveness, inasmuch as 
such a heart is absolutely inaccessible to the Holy Spirit, 
being “guilty of an eternal sin,” v. 29, R. V. The utterances 
of advanced Spiritualists, attributing the Lord’s life and 
work to spirit control, is the modern phase of this blas- 
phemy. The proof that such a sin has not been committed 
is the very anxiety in the mind of the troubled, lest they 
should have done so. ) 

The other sins against the Holy Spirit may be classified 
as follows: 


I. Ignoring the Spirit 


We must distinguish between ignorance of the Spirit and 
ignoring the Spirit. The former was the condition of 
things mentioned in Acts xix. 2, in connection with the 
twelve disciples whom Paul found at Ephesus. In no way 
were they blameable for this. On the other hand, in Gal. 
iii. 3, there was great guilt, “Are ye so foolish? Having 
begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh ?” 
Here was an ignoring of the continuance of the Spirit’s 
presence and work, substituting self-effort and religious 
ordinances for His holy energizing. 

A common sin is this to-day, seen in the religiousness 
that imposes burdens, attaches importance to ritual, and 
magnifies ‘‘works.” 


Il. Despising the Spirit 
Heb. x. 29, “Hath done despite to the Spirit of Grace.” 
Acts xiii. 41, “Behold, ye despisers, and wonder and perish.” 
The sin against which the warning is raised was one pe- 
culiar to those Jews who had come under the Gospel teach- 
ing, and been impressed by it, who had been induced 


ego 


ner 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
—_—eeaeeeeaoEoEoaoaoao——Ee —-eeeeEETESES 
to. renounce their Jewish priesthood, temple sacrifices, and 
be identified with Christianity; but who were tempted to 
recant and return to what they had forsaken, despising the 
work of Christ. For such, if so doing, according to Heb. 
vi. and x., there was no further hope. These texts may 
be wrongly applied to backsliding of life and heart on the 
part of professing or real Christians, and much damage be 
thus wrought. No person in this country, for instance, 
who backslides from following Christ goes back to a for- 
saken form of worship or religion, which had had its origin 
in divine revelation, and its fulfillment in Christ. A little 
thought will show the difference between renouncing Christ 
on the part of a professed Jewish convert, and the cessation 
of faith and love in an ordinary Christian professor. 


III. Resisting the Spirit 


Acts vii. 51, “Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost; as 
your fathers did, so do ye.” The audience addressed by 
Stephen had been “cut to the heart” by the truth announced, 
and intense antagonism had been aroused, which culminated 
in their stoning him. It was a conscious determined sin, 
and, as such, was of an awful nature. Too common is this 
sin now, in many cases, when the Gospel is proclaimed with 
equal clearness. It is the attitude of self-will against God. 


IV. Vexing the Spirit 


Isa. Ixtii. 10, A. V., “They vexed His Holy Spirit.” ‘Psa, 
Ixxviii. 41, “They provoked the Holy One of Israel.” How? 
By perpetually murmuring, doubting, disobeying. The 
whole Psalm will repay close studying, as showing an ex- 
haustion of language in describing every phase of sin 


Ear nn cas CN SN 
aOGuel 


SINS AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT 


against God on the part of His people, Israel. The climax 
was reached at Kadesh-Barnea, when God desired earnestly 
to give them possession of the land of promise, and they 
refused to enter in. Num. xiv. ae 

Similarly the Holy Spirit is prepared to take the people 
of God of to-day into possession of their land of His 
promises, but disobedience and refusal to obey prevent. 
How do we feel when our orders given to a child or ser- | 
vant are repeatedly ignored? Do we not often say, “How 
very vexatious?” Intensify this in thinking of the grieved 
' love that longs for the recognition of an obedient faith in 
order to lead into possession of untold blessedness. 


V. Grieving the Spirit 


Eph, iv.’ 30, “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of Promise.” 
Psa, bexviit. 40, The, gtieved' Him in the desert.) Heb; : 
iii. 17, “With whom was He grieved forty years? Was 
it not with them that were disobedient?” See Psa. xcv. 10, 
“Tt is a people that do always err in their heart.” This 
division is hardly separable from the one before, the words 
vex and grieve being much the same in meaning. There 
is, however, the additional thought of the heart-sin against 
the Spirit of God. In Israel’s case the Presence of God 
was resident in the midst of the camp, and the fact was at- 
tested by the pillar of cloud always visible, day and night. 
With the believer now, the Spirit of God is also residing. 
“Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.” To ignore 
His presence, refuse obedience to His known will, disobey 
the plainly-written commandments, is to grieve Him and 
prevent His further manifestation of power. 


—97— 


en 

THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 

SO OoOm[—a—mooa['—= 
VI. Quenching the Spirit 

1 Thess. v. 19, “Quench not the S pirit.’ The idea here 
will be the extinguishing of the love and power of the Spirit 
in relation to His purposes and work, and causing an utter 
cessation of their manifestation, rather than any such thing 
as absolutely expelling Him. Let us be quite clear on this 
point. Is it possible for a child of God to compel the Spirit 
to leave him on account of his sin? There will be difference 
of opinion. Some will say Yes, others will say No. If 
“Yes” be right then with the Spirit leaving, Life Eternal 
must also go, for He is the Spirit of Life, and the life once 
given can be withdrawn. This would vitiate all such texts 
as “I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never 
perish.” 

The right answer then must be “No.” It is impossible to 
grieve Him away from the human spirit; but it is only too 
possible to grieve Him into stich absolute silence and still- 
ness that it is as though He were absent. All power, holi- 
ness, energy, love, peace, joy, communion with God. Gone. 
But He, the resident Spirit of God, remaining in charge, 
retaining possession in spite of the attitude and hostility of 
the heart, so intensely loving the poor, sinning child, yearn- 
ing and interceding, until the restoration may be effected. 
The use of the word temple in 1 Cor. Ii. 19, helps to 
this conclusion. When Solomon, king of Ishael, had built 
the temple in Jerusalem, the day came for its dedication to 
God. Solomon offered the building in prayer as the gift 
of the nation to God. That is as far as dedication can go. 
The answer of God to dedication is consecration, namely, 
accepting the gift by taking possession. So when the glory 
filled the temple, the building was accepted, and thereby oc- 
cupied. The shekinah glory of God abode in unbroken 
EEE AM Ra npr VOL 0 rte Min Sl ARSED ra 


—98— 


SINS AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT 
———————— 
possession on the Mercy Seat of the Ark in the Most Holy 
Place. That was the inaccessible place to all persons. It 
corresponds to the spirit in the temple of the body. So 
long as all was being conducted according to the rules of 
God inthe matters of temple worship, the manifestation of 
the Presence could continue. Blessing. Power, Prosperity, 
would be the features of Israel’s condition. But when the 
temple courts were defiled, and idolatrous practices were 
permitted in those courts, when the Holy Place was shut 
up, as described on the occasion of Hezekiah’s accession to 
the throne, the Presence of God was driven by national sin 
into the secrecy and silence of the Holy of Holies, and 
Israel was left unguided, unblessed, a prey to her enemies. 
Confession and temple cleansing were always accompanied | 
by restoration to blessing, and God could work again on 
behalf of His people. The vacating of the temple by God’s 
presence did not occur until the destruction of the temple 
took place by Nebuchadnezzar, when Jeremiah was prophet 
in Jerusalem. At this period Ezekiel was a captive by the 
River Chebar, in the province of Babylon. To him God 
gave visions of the departing of the glory from the temple, 
prior to the actual destruction that went on before Jere- 
miah’s eyes. 

From this significant historical fact we draw our lessons 
by analogy in the spiritual realm. Sin and disobedience 
grieve the Spirit of God into silence, but He never leaves 
the Holy of the Holies in the temple of the body when once 
He has entered, until the dissolution of the body. What 
grace and love are here manifested! Well may the apostle 
write, “Quench not the Spirit.” Let His love and power 
glow and burn like a flame of pure glory, permeating and 
pervading the whole temple of the body, shining out 


a 


—99—= 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


from all the windows of the soul, and kindling other 
hearts. 

There are three ways of quenching a fire. 1, By leaving 
it alone: that is neglect. 2, By pouring on water: that is 
wilful sin. 3, By putting on it what will not burn, and 
gradually smothering it: that is selfishness, worldliness. 
In one of these three ways how often is the Spirit quenched. 
Indifference creeps over the soul, prayer and the Word of 
God are neglected, the love of God chills off, and the Spirit 
becomes inoperative; or there is the harboring of and in- 
dulging in known sin, excusing it, providing for it, allowing 
in oneself what we would strongly disallow in others, with 
that treacherous, lying thought, “Oh! I am different!” Or 
again, the self-indulgence and worldliness of circumstances 
are permitted to control the life, and the Spirit of God is 
quenched. 

How easily is He grieved, and how easily is He pleased! 
“The yoke is easy, the burden is light.” Not some great 
thing does He want, but the yielded will, the obedient heart, 
and then He can rejoice and bless. 

Quench not the spirit in others by criticism, unkindness, 
belittling their work or attainment. So often and so easily 
is this done by a careless or unappreciative expression. 


VII. Hardening the Heart against the Spirit 


Heb. iii. 7, “Harden not your hearts.” This is addressed 
to believers in Christ. Is there a danger? Surely, other- 
wise the warning would not be there. It indicates the sin 
of resistance to certain dictates of the Spirit that may go 
contrary to our natural tastes. There may be only a partial 
acceptance of the will of God, hence the absence of the ful- 
ness of blessing. The heart is the seat of the affections, 


—100— 


SE ED 


SINS AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT 


motives and will. Let them all be pliant and submissive, 
that the Holy Spirit may hold and direct them for Christ. 


VIII. Lying to the Spirit 


In Acts v. is the record of one of the most solemn events 
in the internal history of the early Church. The outpour- 
ing of the Spirit had been followed by unexpected and beau- 
tiful manifestations of graciousness. Amongst other re- 
markable things was the spontaneous giving of money, and 
the utter unselfishness of life manifested by the Jewish con- 
vetts. They had all things in common, many that had lands 
and other properties, sold them, and brought the proceeds 
as a gift to the apostles for the relief of the poor. 
There was no command to do so, it was purely voluntary, 
and therefore acceptable to God. Two members of the 
Church, Ananias and Sapphira, had land, and were not 
willing to appear backward; at the same time they were 
unprepared to go the full length that the others had gone. 
There was no sin in this, as the Apostle Peter pointed out; 
but desiring to be reckoned among the majority for conse- 
cration to God, they fell into the terrible snare of presenting 
a portion of the proceeds of the sale of their land as though 
it had been the whole. In doing so, Ananias distinctly 
said that the amount given was the whole, whereupon the 
Apostle Peter replied, “Why hath Satan filled thine heart 
to lie unto the Holy Spirit ?” 

Telling a lie to the Spirit-filled apostles was telling a lie 
to the Holy Spirit. Has this fact been duly considered? 
It is equally true to-day. A spurious consecration, half- 
hearted surrender announced as a full surrender in order 
to be thought “up to the mark” and “as good as the rest,” 
may be found to be perilously near the sin recorded. The 


—101— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


story teaches the need of accuracy in words in narrating 
facts when we make solemn statements in regard to matters 
of spiritual experience. 

The last phase of the series belongs to the same narra- 
tive— 


IX. Tempting the Holy Spirit 


_ Acts v. 9, “How is it that ye have agreed together to 

tempt the Spirit of the Lord?” Thus Peter addressed 
Sapphira when she, not knowing the fate of her husband, 
had reiterated the statement. It was no accidental or un- 
intentional misstatement, hence the greatness of her sin. 

He is the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of Grace and of 
Love, the very Spirit of God and of Christ, therefore, trust 
Him, obey Him, love Him, yield utterly to Him until He can 
fill and flood the whole being with light, love, and purity. 
But if the conscience be smitten with a sense of guilt be- 
cause some of these sins must be laid to our charge, re- 
member that it is the Spirit’s gracious work to cleanse our 
hearts at once from them, applying the results of the mighty 
sacrifice of Calvary, so that the enemy triumph no more, but 
that He be able to shed abroad yet more fully the love of 
God in our hearts. 


—102— 


EEE aE 
SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 


CHAPTER XI 


SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 


WO sets of Scriptures put before us the results 
of the Infilling of the Spirit. Frequently the 
question is asked, “How shall I know if I am 
filled with the Spirit? The answer is, Test 

yourself by these Scriptures, and see how far the 
features of character here depicted are recognizable. 
Where any or all of them are absent, be much in prayer 
that they may henceforth be present in the lite: 

The first passage to be studied will be Ezekiel xxxvi. 
20-37. It is primarily a prophecy foreshadowing God’s 
purposes in the national recovery and restoration of Israel. 
The principles on which such recovery can take place are 
found to be the same as those that must be applied to the 
recovery of the Church of God, or a child of God, from 
any condition of declension. The reason for such action 
of God is given in verses 20-22, in that Israel had profaned 
His holy name among the nations where they had been scat- 
tered. God must vindicate that holy name, and must do so 
in and through the very ones who had profaned it, and to 
whose keeping He had committed it. It is a common 
prayer frequently offered, “Hallowed be thy name;” but 
how few comparatively have found out How it is to be done. 
The name indicates the character. To “hallow the name” 
will be to expect the manifestation of the character in action, 
to wait, trust, obey, and yield, so that God may thus act 
on behalf of His people; to “profane the name” is to 
a 


—103— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


Shape one’s conduct as though there were no such God, and 
no obligation to obey Him, so being conformed to the habits 
of those around. In order to do this, there will be a series 
of definite transactions by God with His people, to which 
they must unreservedly yield themselves, that HE may ac- 
complish His purposes. 


I. Separation by God to God 

Verse 24: “I will take you from among the nations, and 
gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into 
your own land.” ‘The first principle is—God claiming and 
taking His own, to bring them, and put them, where He 
has purposed and promised. This is always Separation 
from what has surrounded the life. 

When God would bless Abraham He said, “Get thee out 
of thy country, and kindred and father’s house.” 

When He would redeem Israel it must be, “Let My 
people go, that they may serve Me.” 

In this passage it is, “I will take,’ “I will gather,’ “I will 
bring.” Is the heart willing for God to have and to hold 
thus? : 

What is “our land’? Is it not the great area of God’s 
promises strewn all through the Bible?—promises of 
abounding grace, of peace like a river, peace passing all 
understanding; of joy unspeakable and full of glory; of 
power over all the power of the enemy ; of hope that maketh 
not ashamed; of the comfort of God in all sorrow. It is 
into possession and enjoyment of all this that God would 
fain bring all His people, that they may be independent of 
all other sources of failing earthly joy. 


II. Cleansing from Sin 
Verse 24: “And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, 


—104— 


SC AOA SE SONIGN LR PSION ENA GG AEA He A IER NA ie ea ea 
SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 
——<————— 
and ye shall be clean; from all your filthiness and from all 
your idols will I cleanse you.” Contact with other nations 
will have defiled Israel, and they will need a full deliver- 
ance from the habits of thought and action that will have 
been contracted by them. The mention of “clean water 
sprinkled” upon them is an allusion to an old ceremony 
given them by Moses in Numb. xix., namely, the killing and 
burning of the red heifer, whose ashes were to be kept; 
so that when an Israelite had come in contact with death 
in any form, by touching a bone, or a grave, or a dead body, 
he was to withdraw himself, and be purified outside the 
camp by being sprinkled with water mixed with the ashes ; 
and then to return to his place in the camp. 

Ashes are’the result of a sacrifice by fire. The clean 
man sprinkling the unclean with this “clean water,” applied 
to him the results of the atoning sacrifice that had been of- 
fered for him. 

Similarly the child of God who has come in touch un- 
avoidably with what is associated with death, needs to be 
cleansed from the defilement and the power of it, and the 
Hory Sprrit applies the results of CurisT’s SACRIFICE to 
the heart, by means of the Scripture, the Word of God, 
containing the truth about the death of Christ. 

The unconverted are spoken of as being “dead in tres- 
passes and sins.” Self-effort is called “dead works,” and 
from both these defiling powers there must be cleansing. 
It is impossible to avoid the daily contact with those who are 
“dead in sins”; hence the need for the continual cleansing 
which is provided by the continual presence of the Spirit of 
God. 

Tear-ducts are located round the eye, so that the moment 
-any foreign bodies touch the eye, the ducts may pour water 


—105— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


over the eyeball to wash away such substance. The eye 
“waters” so long as the irritation is maintained, caused by 
this presence of foreign matter. Even so the Holy Spirit, 
resident within, will remove immediately the presence of 
evil thought, purpose, or intention from the heart, cleansing 
and keeping clean. God says, “I will sprinkle.” It is the 
sovereign grace of God pledged to meet the recurring need 
in His people. 
III. A New Heart and a New Spirit 

Verse 26: “A new heart will I give you, and a new spirit 
will I put within you; and I will take away the stony 
heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of 
flesh.” A new heart will be receptive, sensitive, clean, capa- 
ble; responsive in will, motive, and affection to God’s will; 
no longer irresponsive, like a stone, unyielding, and un- 
impressionable. Conscience will become fully alive to sin, 
and give warning of its approach. Then the new spirit 
will be that which will receive the Holy Spirit, that into 
which He can enter, being welcomed as the abiding Lord. 


IV. The Indwelling Spirit 

Verse 27: “And I will put my Spirit within you, and 
cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My 
judgments to do them.” The incoming of the Spirit in- 
troduces the law of God, which cannot be obeyed by the 
unchanged heart. The power that controls is the power of 
God’s presence, making lawlessness impossible. It will in 
future be “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, set- 
ting free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. viii. 3). 
The new law makes impossible the old life: “Ye cannot 
do things that ye would” (Gal. v. 17). 

The new spirit rejoices in the advent of the Holy Spirit, 
for He alone can satisfy and control. From this Holy of 


—106— 


Sea PUA LT Een enn a 
SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 
———_——————————————eeeeeeeeeeeeeeoooooooeoeoeoeueem=s,s 
Holies of the temple of the body, the Spirit fills the Holy 
place in the new heart, kindling the fire on the golden altar 
of intercession and prayer, lighting the lamps of truth, and 
revealing Christ ever present as the sustenance of the life. ’ 


V. Salvation from Sinning 

Verse 29: “I will save you from all your uncleannesses.” 
This is not a repetition of the statements of verse 25, but 
the further result of the cleansing and indwelling, namely, — 
the prevention of the recurrence of the old habits of sin, 
from which full deliverance is given. This is a blessing that 
many are needing and seeking. It is promised as the result, 
not of our effort, but of a Divine Presence, ever holding the 
heart in its holy, powerful keeping, and from that centre 
controlling and guiding even to the circumference of the 
life,—the everyday business and occupation. How com- 
pletely changed will be the experience as this holy domina- 
tion is accepted! In order to this, specific, definite sins 
should be dealt with by being handed over to the Spirit of 
God for immediate treatment, and that He may occupy the 
place they have occupied hitherto. 


VI. Increase of Strength and Joy 

Verses 29, 30: “I will call for the corn, and will multiply 
it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will multiply the 
fruit of the tree and the increase of the field, that ye shall 
receive no more the reproach of famine among the nations.” 
Corn is the emblem of strength, Fruit the emblem of joy. 
The two great features of the Spirit-filled life are power 
and gladness; not occasionally, but perpetually. How often 
has the enemy reproached the people of God for weakness 
and gloominess, taunting with inability to do this or that, 
and for much sadness of countenance. 


Nee ere eeace ere ere eee eee cscs ocean cece SIs GNI nITEAN ARNT 


—107—= 


en TLL Eee 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


Alas! only too true; but now there shall be no more re- 
proach of famine, no more semi-starvation of character and 
life, no more permanent sadness. The great word multiply 
comes in, so much stronger than add. We can only add; 
God can multiply. The Fruit will be—‘“the fruit of the 
Spirit” (Gal. v. 22, 23). The Corn will be—“strengthened 
with all might by His Spirit in the inner man” (Eph. iii. 16). 


VII. Rebuilding and Replanting 


Verses 33-35: “In the day that I cleanse you from all your 
iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited and the 
waste places shall be builded. And the land that was deso- 
late shall be tilled, whereas it was desolation in the sight 
of all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that was 
desolate is become like the Garden of Eden, and the waste 
and desolate and ruined cities are fenced and inhabited.” 

The passage suggests the effects of the occupation by 
God of the whole life and its energies. Waste characterizes 
so much unused time, talent, opportunity, money. Dersova- 
TION describes so much of the inner condition of heart and 
mind—good for nothing in particular, nothing brought forth 
for God. 

New the rebuilding commences, called in the Epistles the 
edifying—the affections, motives, desires have thcir spring 
in God and grow up in Him. Every faculty of mind and 
body, every moment of time, every opportunity offerinz is 
utilized, and the dreary life becomes a busy life. So much 
so, that it is remarked by passers-by, It is like the Garden of 
Eden! In what way? The Garden of Eden was planted by 
the Lord God with every tree was good for food: it had 
a river running through it that divided into four heads; in 
the midst of it was the Tree of Life, and also the Tree of 


—108— 


a 
SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 
—— een 
the Knowledge of Good and Evil: there was gold in it, and 
the quality was excellent. Similarly, in the Spirit-filled life © 
there will be variety of growths of the Lord’s planting that 
will be fruitful in many ministries to others : there will be the 
River of the water of life clear as crystal, flowing through 
it, making it glad with the gladness of God: there will be 
the outflowing in all directions of influence and blessing to 
others, north, south, east, and west to the heathen at home 
and abroad: there will be, as the central fact, the life of 
Christ in the heart, and the corresponding knowledge of 
right and wrong, with the power to choose the one and 
refuse the other; there will be the pure gold of divine love 
that will be lavished on the unloving and unlovely, seeking 
no return, but rejoicing in loving for love’s sake. And the 
effect of all this? It will be twofold.— 
First Effect—Self-Loathing 

“Then shall ye remember your evil ways, and your do- 
ings that were not good: and ye shall loathe yourselves ink 
your own sight for your iniquities and for your abomina- 
tions” (ver. 31). A backward light will fall on the past, 
showing it up in its true colors, and causing self-loathing, 
bitter humiliation, confession of sin, and expression of the 
mighty grace of God that has had patience, and has wrought 
effectually for cleansing and deliverance. To many this ex- 
perience has come as a surprise and a difficulty. The joy of 
the Lord and the sense of newness of life temporarily van- 
sches for a vision of self almost unsupportable. Tt must not 
be allowed to discourage, but be understood as a proof of 
the infilling, not a proof of failure. God desires that we 
look back to know ourselves, and so much the more magnify 
Him. “Not for your sake do I this, saith the Lord God, 
be it known unto you.” 


LT 


—109— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


Chosen not for good in me, 
Wakened up from wrath to flee; 
Hidden in my Saviour’s side, 

By His Spirit sanctified. 

Teach me, Lord, on earth to shew 
By my life how much I owe. 


Look to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged, and 
then sing again the new song— 


Unto Him who hath loved us and loosed us from sin, 
Unto Him be the glory for ever. Amen. 


Second Effect—Blessing to Others 

“Then the nations that are left round about you shall 
know that I, the Lord, have builded the ruined places, and 
planted that which was desolate” (ver. 36). Instead of the 
Name of the Lord blasphemed, that Name, honoured and 
believed because of the change of character wrought by the 
Spirit of God. The channel of blessing for others is nar- 
rowed, if not completely choked by disobedience, but opened 
by the surrender of heart and spirit to God, so that the 
stream may flow unhindered. 


HOW OBTAINED 

“For this, moreover, will I be enquired of by the house 
of Israel to do it for them, I will increase them with men 
like a flock” (ver. 37). Prayer is needed; God will be en- 
quired of, that hearts may be brought into harmony with 
His Holy Will, and know His purposes of mercy. 

The other Scripture that deals with the results of the ful- 
ness of blessing is Eph. v. and vi. In chap. v. 18 is the famil- 
iar passage, “Be filled (or filling) with the Spirit,” and the 
outcome will be 


a eS SEES EPS SE 


—110— 


eee nn EE 
SOME RESULTS OF THE INFILLING OF THE SPIRIT 
—_————————— 
I. Heart Melody 

“Singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord,” 
“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth Me.” The Lord loves to 
hear the heart worship that may not always be expressed in 
words, but can nevertheless be heard in heaven. : 


II. Thanksgiving 

“Giving thanks always for all things in the name of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, to God, even the Father.” (ver. 19). 
Addressing our thanks as children full of gratitude to our 
Father, and yet ever remembering that the position we oc- 
cupy here is similar to that our Lord occupied, therefore, 
in His Name, representing Him, and claiming only the ac- 
cess through Him. 


III. Submission to One Another 

“Subjecting yourselves one to another in the fear of the 
Lord” (ver. 21). This is loss of self-assertion and self- 
opinion, first in the family relationship, the inner circle, 
where God’s work must always first begin. The Holy Spirit 
will fill the home life with fragrance, love and sweetness, the 
reflection of the utterly yielded spirit to the Lord, and there 
will be unity of heart and purpose there. Parents and chil- 
dren, husbands and wives, masters and servants—all dis- 
charging their different relationships as to the Lord. 


VI. Empowered 


“Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of 
His might” (vi. 10). A vigorous, healthy, strong life, able 
to resist temptation, to stand firm amid storms of opposition, 
of subtlety, or of flattery, because God is the strength of the 
soul. 
i nn EEE 


—lll— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


V. Clothed in Armour 


“Put on the whole armour of God” (ver. 11-20). God 
has an equipment for the whole life. No part shall be vul- 
nerable ; no wile or fiery dart of the enemy shall touch. En- 
closed and encased, the Spirit-filled life shall move scathless 
in the battle, an object of ceaseless attack, but invulnerable. 
This is the special appointment of God for the surrendered, 
filled life. 

Self-effort, so long powerless against the enemy, sup- 
planted by the Spirit of God, powerful for offence and de- 
fence. Head—seat of the thoughts and mind. Heart—seat 
of the will and affections. Loins—place of strength and up- 
rightness. Feet—means of locomotion and movement. 
Hands—filled with the weapons that attack and defend— 
thus standing complete in all the will of God. 


Conflict in Heavenly Places 

“For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but 
against the principalities, against the powers, against the 
world-rulers of this darkness, against the spirits of wicked- 
ness in the heavenly places” (ver. 12). The sphere of the 
conflict has been moved from self and circumstances to the 
foes of God in the upper regions, where by faith we have 
access, and where we shall find the real enemy is lodged. 

Importunity in prayer, watchfulness to see the hand of 
God working, and to note answers to prayer, are the out- 
come of this position. To dislodge the powers of darkness 
through communion with the Risen Lord, is the work of the 
Spirit-filled believer. Let us test ourselves by the foregoing 
facts, and seek unremittingly to know and receive the in- 
filling, that such results may be the constant experience. 


—112— 


WALKING AND PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 


CHAPTER XII 


| WALKING IN THE SPIRIT—PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 


HIS chapter will deal with some practical de- 
tails summed up in the phrases: “Walking 
in the Spirit,” “Praying in the Spirit.” 


I. Walking in the Spirit 

Gal. v. 16: “I say, Walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not 
fulfill the lusts of the flesh. | 

Gal. v. 25: “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by 
the Spirit.” 

The words translated “zvalk” in the two verses have slight- 
ly different meanings. In the first, the ordinary idea of 
walking is conveyed; in the second, there is the military 
idea of keeping step, keeping in rank, being, therefore, 
under orders. The one is ordinary, the other is special; and 
therefore the command is, Be always in the ordinary way, 
walking by the Spirit and Be always specially under His 
orders for walk, keeping step, being in harmony with Him. 


What is Walking? 


It is the first activity of the morning—it is the last thing at 
night. From first to last then, “Walk by the Spirit.”” Walk- 
ing is simply taking one step at a time—so take that one 
step at a time by the Spirit. This will mean no hastiness, 
no self-will, no independence of spirit. 

In Gen. v. 22-24 we find the brief story of Enoch, of 
whom the dominant feature recorded is that he “walked 
SS SS RS SSS SESS SES SSS SSS SSS SS SE SEES PESTS 

} —113— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


with God.” Examining a little more closely, it appears 
that the birth of his eldest son, Methuselah, was the crisis 
point of his life, and from that point he is said to have walked 
with God. Was it the helplessness of that little life in his 
arms that awoke him to a deeper sense of his own helpless- 
ness! Did he see that as he walked about, possibly with his 
little one utterly safe and content in his arms, he, too, 
might similarly be upborne by the strong arms of God, and 
did his whole heart then go out in full abandonment to God 
from henceforth to walk with God? Another feature of 
such a walk, is Communion—interchange of thought—com- 
munication with one another. To Enoch God could com- 
municate many things that He could not to others, and the 
great delight to God is to have one who will listen to Him, 
believe Him, accept all He says with an unquestioning faith 
and a hearty response—no “hath God said!” intervening. 
The result in this case was Translation; “He was not, for 
God took him.” But “before his translation he had this testi- 
mony that he pleased God.” To walk by the Spirit, then, is 
to be in communion with God, to receive His revelations, to 
please Him by agreeing with Him, and to obey the Will of 
God in all matters, great and small. 

The same phrase is used with regard to Noah, in Gen. 
vi. 9: “Noah walked with God.” The result in his case, 
was the revelation of the coming doom on the Godless earth, 
and the means of escape to be provided. 

The faithful man proclaimed unhesitatingly the truth, 
warned the people, spent years in preaching righteousness, 
and by his action in building the ark, proved the sincerity 
of his testimony ; shewing his faith by his works, and by so 
doing condemning the world, proving he was righteous. To 
walk with God will be to warn and to save, and so be clear 


ERE 
—114— 


a 
WALKING AND PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 
_—————————— 
from the blood of others. Intensity, earnestness, reality, will 
be the features of such a character. Communion must al- 
ways be accompanied by service. 

A third illustration is drawn from Abraham in Gen. : xvii. 
1, where we read of the word of God coming to him: te 
am El-Shaddai (the Almighty God), WALK BEFoRE Me, and 
be thou perfect: and I will make a covenant between Me 
and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.” To walk 
before God is to walk under the consciousness of His 
watchful love, to be protected by His Unseen Presence, 
to have the light of His countenance resting upon one, and 
to know His friendship, unalterable by circumstances. This 
attitude earned for Abraham the title, “the Friend of 
God.” This friendship introduces the soul to an agreement 
whereby all God’s promises can be fulfilled in the every-day 
life. No detail is too small for His loving care—no temp- 
tation to self-indulgence can be yielded to in His holy pres- 
ence. The agreement of the soul with God’s will enable 
the two to walk together. (Amos iii. 3), “Can two walk 
together except they be agreed?” 

Mal. ii. 4-7 contains a wonderful passage concerning Levi, 
allusion being made to the attitude and action of Phinehas, 
the son of Eleazar, the priest, in the matter of Israel’s sin 
with Moab. (See Num. xxv.) The phrase we are studying 
occurs in verse 6 of Mal. ii.: “The law of truth was in his 
mouth, and unrighteousness was not found in his lips: he 
walked with me in peace and uprightness, and did turn many 
away from iniquity. For the priest’s lips should seek knowl- 
edge, and they should seek the law at his mouth; for he is 
the messenger of the Lord of hosts.” 

Here we find a combination of features in the man who 


er oe 
—115— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


walks with God, and who walks therefore in the Spirit. In 
verse 5, he stands in awe of the Name of God—no irrever- 
ence, no trifling, no flippancy. His speech is full of accurate 
statements concerning Divine things. No corrupt communi- 
cation proceeds out of his mouth, “no unrighteousness.” 
Such a wholesomeness in both ordinary and special conver- 
sation; a man God can rely on to be faithful and careful, 
pure in speech, and thus helpful always to others in what he 
says. Then further, “He walked with me in peace and up- 
rightness :” such a holy calm, such an expression on the 
countenance of an undisturbed mind, proceeding from the 
knowledge of all sin put away, all controversy of will set- 
tled, all antagonism ended. Uprightness—the idea of un- 
challenged conduct, an absolutely right attitude towards 
men and circumstances—and the blessed result of success- 
fully winning others from the way of sin. This “turning 
many from iniquity,” is a phrase found again in Acts ili. 
26, when the Apostle Peter makes use of it, as the purpose 
of God in sending Christ to Israel. Soul-winning power is 
the result of walking with God. Such an one is the Lord’s 
messenger, to be acknowledged as such, listened to, yielded 
to, for he is the bringer of the words of life and power. 
Combine then the characters of Enoch, Noah, Abraham, 
and Phinehas, and see how they beautifully illustrate the 
various phases of the Walk in the Spirit. Then to these add 
yet another expression, found in the New Testament, name- 
ly, 2 Cor. vi. 16: “I will walk im them.” Here a fresh 
thought is presented: God the Energizer of the life, so that 
all the activities shall be God-directed and inspired. How 
successful and holy such a life will be, and how unlike the 
former phase of it, and the perpetual experience of failure. 


ere A 


—116— 


WALKING AND PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 


It is a strong expression, and corresponds to the one used 
of the Holy Spirit as “clothing himself with Cigeat | 
(Judges vi. 34). 

In Acts xiii. and xvi. there are illustrations of ‘etka in 
the Spirit. At the Antioch meeting the Holy Spirit said: 
“Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto 
I have called them.” Immediately action was taken in full 
obedience, and the two were sent out commended by the 
prayers of the Church there assembled. 


Following the history of Paul, it is noticeable how he was 
guided, and hindered, in going along certain pathways of 
service. Acts xvi. 6: “Forbidden to speak the word in Asia,’ 
verse 7, “They essayed to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit 
suffered them not. 

The Spirit of God had other plans, and was guiding these 
men to Macedonia, that they might open up fresh fields of 
evangelistic work. How often have God’s people failed to 
perceive the mind of the Spirit in paths of service, and have 
pushed into inviting fields of labour, to find to their surprise 
so little result. There needs to be a great sensitiveness to 
the Spirit’s voice, and a yieldedness of the will to be ready 
to obey what may appear to be opposed to common sense 
and providential circumstances. “The sheep follow Him for 
they know His voice” (John x. 4). Do we know the voice? 
Can we be led by the voice? Have we the faith that can 
follow when the path seems so strangely crooked! There 
must be such a clear conception of the infallible wisdom of 
the Spirit, together with the cultivated habit of recognising 
His gentlest intimation and obeying it without a question. 
It is a splendid abandonment to the will of another, which 
has been called a “holy recklessness” as to consequences. 


—117— 


feeenenaseeeeteecencteR RA 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


ee 
Henne ee ere a 


And now I have flung myself recklessly out, 
Like a chip on the sea of His Infinite Will; 

And I pass the rough rocks with a smile and a shout, 
And I just let my God His dear purpose fulfill. 


II. Praying in the Spirit 

Jude 20, “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your 
most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves 
in the love of God.” The Holy Spirit is the Great Director 
of prayer, and only prayer in the Spirit can be accepted and 
answered. He examines and tests the motives for our ask- 
ing. He suggests the subjects for our asking. He phrases 
the petitions in our asking. He undertakes all the wonderful 
mystery of prayer from within, expressed in words, or in 
groanings that are inexpressible. What is His connection 
with prayer? He understands the Will of God for us: He 
knows the good things purposed, the schemes for us planned 
by God ; the service we can acceptably render to God. Then 
He takes into His love our families, our needs, our sorrows, 
our desires, our trials, our temptations. He looks into them 
all, perfectly understands them all. To us much is mystery, 
to Him nothing is mystery. To us the next day or hour iS 
veiled, but not to him; therefore He loves and longs to have 
such control of our thoughts and desires, as to be able, 
unhindered, to indite prayer, and such prayer as He knows iS 
according to the will of God, and so must be answered. 

With regard to prayer, one great question must be faced. 
Does prayer ever alter things? Was God already planned 
in His Ommniscence the circumstances and affairs of our 
lives? If so, then what can prayer avail? It is the mere 
beating of the wings against the cage of unalterable purpose, 
and can serve no real good end. But if God has purposely 
left many things unsettled, undecided, in order that believing 


LS 


—118— 


ee a a 


WALKING AND PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 
JI iii 
prayer may be exercised to settle them, then what a weapon 
of marvellous power is placed in the hands of all! There is 
some meaning in the lines 


“Prayer moves the hand that moves the world 
And brings the blessing down.” 


But we must first be sure of it. Then knowing that God 
waits for the intimation of our desires, and seeing those de- 
sires are formed and shaped by the Holy Spirit, so as to be 
in Harmony wth His will, He answers prayer, and there is 
a definite link between Him and us, agreement as to what 
shall be done, an entering into His counsels, a communion 
of the most blessed nature. Rom. viii. 26-28 is the great pas- 
sage on the Spirit’s intercession in us, and for us. 

How can we know the will of God in relation to matters of 
prayer? Here an acquaintance with Scripture helps. Only 
thus can there be any revelation of the will of God. Certain 
things pertaining to the spiritual life are revealed—certain 
facts as to the salvation of souls, and the sanctification of be- 
lievers are disclosed. They have to be sought out, learned, 
marked, and then used as the basis of prayer. Again, there 
are the rich clusters of promises strewn here and there 
throughout the Bible—they have to be sought out, learned, 
and claimed in prayer, for the glory of God, not for the 
mere personal enjoyment of the petitioner, or for the easing 
of a burden, or the limiting of the pressure of difficulty. ithe 
will of God here again controls the use of the promises of 
God, and this will be “praying in the Holy Spirit.” 

The gracious passage of 1 John v. 13, 14, 15, should 
mightily stimulate to believing prayer, and enable the soul 
to anchor on the sure word of God, apart from any visible 
answer granted. “If we ask anything according to His 
a 
—119— 


i RATAN a RISO CEG DN eas ecient Mins, NS SR SE Tega 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 
— EEE! EE: 
will, He heareth us.” This is the first statement. Frame 
the request, then, so as to. have it undoubtedly within the 
revealed will of God, and the prayer is HEARD. That is to 
say, it has received the attention of God, it has reached its 
destination, the ear and heart of God. Then “if we know 
that He hears us, whatsoever we ask,” here the “whatso- 
ever” is qualified by the previous clause, “according to His 
will.” It is not, therefore, anything and everything we may 
choose to ask for, but with the limitation described, we 
know that we have the petitions asked of Him. This is 
“the communion of the Holy Ghost.” He has indited the 
prayer, knowing the will of God, the prayer has been pre- 
sented, has been received and has been answered to faith, 
but not to sight. One thing is still wanting, namely, the 
date. ‘That God keeps in His own Sovereign hand, the 
but He can fill that in, and He can only do so on the ful- 
- fillment of the conditions laid down by Himself under which 
certain blessings can be bestowed. He must wait until the 
Person prayed for is brought also into harmony with His 
will by the Spirit, who is aware of all this, and whose Om- 
nipotent power is directed to the accomplishment of the will 
of God with as little delay as possible. 

Faith takes the answer and gives thanks, thus pledging 
God to the accomplishment of the petition as agreed to. 
Our mistake may have been not thanking God before we 
saw the answer arrive. 

And what about prayers concerning matters in which we 
can obtain no knowledge of the will of God? Pray subject 
to the clause, “If it be Thy holy will.” Time alone can 
prove—patience and hope are called into exercise, and there 
will be the learning of other lessons of prayer in the Spirit. 

It is a wonderful school to be in. The beauties of the 


—1Z20— 


WALKING AND PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT 


lessons given never fade. Endless variety is manifested 
in divine methods of accomplishing Divine purposes, and 
blending them with the Spirit-guided prayers. All is de- 
signed to bring us nearer to God, to make God more real, 
faith more real, the present more unreal, and the life begot- 
ten by the Spirit, sealed by the Spirit, led by the Spirit, 
anointed by the Spirit, and filled with the Spirit, more truly 
and wholly the heavenly life. 


—121— 


THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


CHAPTER XIII 


THE GIFT OF TONGUES 


HERE has sprung up latterly in this country 

a movement known as the “TONGUES” 

movement, which has spread to many parts 

of the world with amazing rapidity. Its 
prominent teaching is that speaking in tongues was the 
prominent and peculiar and new manifestation of the Holy 
Spirit on the day of Pentecost, and that the possession of 
this gift alone marks what is known as the Baptism of the 
Spirit. Without this gift the Baptism, it is alleged, is 
absent, and the Fullness has not been bestowed: only a 
measure of the Spirit’s presence and power. Naturally 
this has caused and is causing great disturbance of thought, 
great searchings of heart, and much anxiety, together with 
much seeking after the gift of tongues. — 

The argument is based on the following facts: Ist, 
in Acts 2, the outpouring of the Spirit was accompanied 
by the bestowal on all the 120 of the gift of Tongues, 
for they all spake with tongues as the Spirit gave them utter- 
ance. 2d, in Acts 10, when the Apostle Peter preached to 
the household of Cornelius, the Spirit fell on them and 
they spoke with tongues. 3d, in Acts 20, when the 
apostle Paul found the twelve Jewish brethren at Ephesus 
who had not heard of the arrival of the Holy Spirit, he 
told them all the full story; they were baptized in the 
Name of Jesus, and received the Holy Spirit, and spake 
with tongues. These three are the only three occurrences 


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THE GIFT OF TONGUES 


recorded. From them the deduction is made that the gift 
of Tongues is the mark of the baptism of the Spirit. We 
have discussed the use and meaning of the word Baptism 
elsewhere in these pages, and need not repeat the 
argument. But now to look into the mention of the 
tongues, and then into the absence of the mention of the 
tongues, when it might have been expected that prominence _ 
would have been given to it, if this argument were cor- 
rect. 

Why was there a gift of tongues on the day of Pente- 
cost? Because there was urgency and emergency. A 
great gathering of Jews was there from all parts attending 
the annual Feast of weeks called Pentecost. Many were 
about to return to their own homes. Startling and stirring 
things had been happening in the Capital, Jesus of Nazareth 
had been denounced as a blasphemer, crucified as a male- 
factor, and accused of being a conspirator against the 
Roman government. There was a certain amount of 
superficial show of truth in the statements that were current, 
though they were practically contradicted by another set 
of statements and facts. Opinion was divided—and where 
was the conclusive evidence on either side? The arrival 
of the Holy Spirit with the double accompaniment of the 
sound as of a rushing mighty wind and the appearance 
of tongues as of fire had startled the city, and drawn the 
immense crowds together, greatly wondering. Hence the 
necessity for immediate and full explanation of the events 
that had happened and were happening. So they spake 
with tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance, and every 
foreign born Israelite heard the gospel in his own tongue, 
and the full explanation from the Scriptures with which 
he was so familiar. It was a speaking not in an unknown 


a ca TEEPE EL SE ESE LE I EE ST PL SP TEE SEES SE PEEL ITE LB SEED TELE TT TLL) 


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THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


tongue, but in the current languages there represented. 
It was the reverse of Babel, and united where languages 
had previously separated. There was apparently no repeti- 
tion of the circumstances on any subsequent occasion. The 
purpose had been served. It was the Holy Spirit’s method 
of evangelizing those foreigners who would soon be de- 
parting home. 

The feature was they all heard in their own lan- 
guages the Wonderful works of God. No Tongue was an 
Unknown Tongue. To-day those who claim the return of 
“the Pentecostal Gift” are speaking in Unknown Tongues, 
and NO ONE is hearing the Wonderful works of God 
thus. What is claimed as Pentecostal is the actual reverse 
of it. This phase should be well considered. 

On the next occasion at the house of Cornelius, another 
difficulty had arisen. The apostle Peter was extremely re- 
luctant to go to Cesarea Philippi, and mingle with Gentiles 
who were heathen born. The Lord had some difficulty in 
getting him there. When there, he had no expectation of 
the results, in that Gentiles were to be partakers of the 
like blessing in the gospel with the Jews. He had to see 
the same thing. happen there as at Jerusalem, to convince 
him, and to convince the church at Jerusalem also, that 
God had made no difference, but had poured out the same 
gift on them as at the beginning. This he fully asserted 
when he gave in his report to the Elders at Jerusalem, as 
recorded in Chapter II. The Gift of Tongues proved that 
the blessing to the Gentiles was identical with that to the 
Jews. 

In the third case a similar principle is maintained. These 
Jewish brethren had heard nothing of the history of the 
movement commencing with the baptism of John, and 


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THE GIFT OF TONGUES 


now they are linked experimentally with the Jerusalem 
church, and to the first ingathering from among the Gentiles. 
The speaking with tongues was the proof that the same 
quality and measure of blessing through the Spirit was 
given them at conversion, as elsewhere. | 

Now we will look at the OMISSIONS of the mention 
of the gift of tongues. When the 3,000, at the close of the 
day of Pentecost, were filled with the Spirit, having been 
baptized, we have no record of such gift. Later, when 
5,000 more were added to the church, no mention. When 
the Spirit was given to the Samaritans in Acts 8, still no 
mention, nor in the case of the Ethiopian Treasurer of 
Queen Candace. In Acts 6, where the Deacons are chosen 
who were men full of the Holy Ghost, there is no mention, 
neither is there any inference that they had previously 
spoken with tongues. Then throughout the whole of 
Paul’s ministry, as given in the book of the Acts, we have 
no mention of the gift as accompanying the work, save by 
inference in the case of the church at Corinth, which had 
all the gifts in abundant and exceptional measure. The 
argument put forth fails altogether when tested by the 
narrative of facts. Further, the history of God’s people in 
all the centuries disproves the assumption that now, to a 
few, is vouchsafed the FULLNESS of BLESSING only, 
and that they are possessors of the great power of God 
as given in the first century. It is one of the enemy’s 
tactics to make little groups of believers think they have 
been selected from the whole church for a special and 
peculiar manifestation of God, that sets them above and 
apart. 

A close examination of the first epistle to the Corin- 
thians will go to show that speaking with tongues was the 


SP a 


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Ee ES RO A ET SEES TE SO IRAE TB ET AEE AE A SIE A REE 
THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


last and the least of the gifts, and not to be specially de- 
sired, as being so limited in its usefulness. This would 
never have been so stated if it had been the special mark 
of the Fullness of Blessing. Keen is the hunger in many 
hearts after all the Lord has to give. Eagerly are eyes 
watching for some fresh manifestations of the power of 
God through the Spirit. All the more susceptible there- 
fore are many, but partially acquainted with the word of 
God, to the entry of the enemy’s imitations of God’s 
gifts. 

Then is there no such thing as Speaking with Tongues? 
Verily there is, and solemn and blessed it is. To whom 
has it been given? It would appear from such information 
as is at hand, that the real blessing has been given IN 
PRIVATE, often unexpectedly and without any seeking for 
it, and that it has been bestowed for the purposes of worship 
and adoration, not for soul winning and display. There 
are some few cases of such gift being bestowed in public 
meetings, and such have been accompanied by a spirit of 
gentleness, humility, sobriety and love. 

On the other hand, meetings held for the “seeking of 
the baptism” and for receiving “the seal of the gift of 
tongues” have been opportunities for the enemy to counter- 
feit the work of God, to introduce confusion and excite- 
ment, and to wofully injure the true work of God. It is 
doubtful whether there be any warrant for the holding of 
any stich meetings and equally doubtful whether the real 
gift is bestowed at such meetings. The fruits borne subse- 
quently have not been the Fruit of the Spirit. 

Another matter may receive notice here. Have we any 
right to speak of “Pentecostal blessing”? or to say “Have 
you received your Pentecost?” These phrases introducing 


—126— 


nesses er DN 


THE GIFT OF TONGUES 


the use of the word “Pentecost” may prove to be very 
misleading. What was Pentecost? It was a Jewish feast 
day that had been observed for centuries, as had Passover 
day, and Trumpets, and day of Atonement. Its associa- 
tion was exclusively with the Jewish calendar, and it had 
no meaning outside of that fact. True, there was under- 
lying the Jewish organization the great purpose of God, 
foreshadowed in type, and outlined in order of the feasts. 
It was an incident that the Holy Spirit arrived to dwell in 
the church on that day. No mention is ever made of the 
word afterwards. No allusion is found to the name of the 
day as attached to the events of that particular day. The 
blessing is NOT Pentecostal, strictly speaking. It is the 
Holy Spirit’s presence and Power received by faith on any 
day, every day, accompanied by such manifestations and 
gifts and powers as He shall divide severally to each ac- 
cording to His own will, and according to the circum- 
stances and conditions and times in which the people of 
God are found. Let us beware of a fictitious using of 
names and phrases, conveying (all unconsciously) a false 
impression. He gives the Spirit to them that obey Him. 
He has a purpose for every life—seek to know it and fulfill 
it under His guidance and through His indwelling. He 
has resources and reserves of blessing—ask for such as 
may be needed for the daily life and experience, and therein 
rejoice and rest. He gives liberally. He will withhold noth- 
ing that is needed for the glory of Christ. 

But we are living in days of extraordinary activity on 
the part of the enemy. Never was God’s truth so denied 
on the one hand, or simulated on the other hand, as now. 
It is easy for Christians to be thrown off their guard by 
all sorts of spurious manifestations. The Lord warned 


SN ees ____ na! 


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THE PERSON AND MISSION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 


of the fact that in His name many would do wonderful 
works, and cast out demons. The presence of wonderful 
works, even of speaking with tongues, is not a guarantee 
that the Spirit of God is behind it all. Try the spirits—THE 
mark of the work of God is LOVE—love for the brethren— 
love for the lost—love for the Lord. All that separates 
the people of God, and divides and judges others, may well 
be looked at with the utmost caution. There are any number 
of self-appointed leaders claiming to be led of God, and 
appearing to be possessed of supernatural gifts, that after 
all are not of the Truth. 


2 
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